927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks Archives - Page 67 of 92

March 7, 2011December 17, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks

Pale Male vs. Pale Female

Some field marks to tell these two hawks apart…

Two broken primary wing tips on Pale Male’s left wing. Hers are all fine. (This mark will only last until he molts this summer.)

Pale Male has a solid red tail with all feathers in place and in good shape. His tail is red, black terminal band, some red then white. Her tail which seems to be less covered by terials and primaries than Pale Male, is much lighter, with a bright white shaft showing, a broken feather on the far left, and a damaged feather also on the left. The tail is white/light red, then a weak red, a black terminal band then white.

Pale Male has a light throat, and the female’s is dark. While both have similar markings on their flanks, her belly’s marks are noticeably darker with larger splotches of color.

March 5, 2011December 25, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks

On Saturday, I got to see a great deal of Pale Male and his new mate. She’s being called lots of things, Pale Beauty, Pearl and Paula, but until there is some consensus, I’ll be calling her Pale Female.

Pale Male caught a pigeon. He plucked it, eat some of it and then called for Pale Female. She eat it, and when she had finished, called him to eat the remains.

Later, she was on a “Linda Building” (920 Fith Avenue, two buildings south of the nest building) window railing, when he arrived with another snack. Having both just eaten, he cached the bird on their nest, and returned to the railing where they copulated.

They sat together for about half an hour, before Pale Male left and went to roost on a tree at the bottom of Pilgrim Hill. She however remained on the railing and was still there when I left the part at 7 p.m.

As we get to know the new female, each of the 5th Avenue bird watchers were sharing tips about how to tell the two birds apart. His white/light brown throat vs. her dark throat. Her droplet like chest spots vs. his oak leaf patterned barred vertical strips. Her broken tail feather and lighter tail. His two missing primary wing tips. I’m sure we’ll find more, but I think most of us are starting to find it easier to tell them apart.

After the failed nests of the last years, we have a new variable. Will the nest work with a new female, or not? We’ll know in a few months.

March 4, 2011December 19, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks

Pale Male and Mate Late On Friday

I got to watch Pale Male and his new mate go to roost on Friday. They choose different trees near the East Drive.

One of the funny things about hawk watching is explaining to tourists that hawks don’t live in their nests like Monk Parakeets, but that they perch and roost all over their territory when not actually using the nest to raise offspring. I think anyone who watches Pale Male has repeated this explanation thousands of times.

In the video Pale Male is at the bottom of the screen, and his mate above. The shots in the tree are all of the female.

March 3, 2011December 25, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks

Quiet Afternoon

These photographs are from Sunday. I’ve been too busy to post them earlier. It was a relaxed afternoon, with Pale Male on his nest and his new mate on a nearby building.

February 26, 2011December 25, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks

Plat Du Jour

The Plat Du Jour Saturday afternoon was squirrel. Pale Male caught it next just inside the park opposite the nest building. He went to about five different spots to eat it. While eating he called to his new mate, so he could share, but she never came to eat “seconds”.

February 19, 2011December 19, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks

Sleeping Together

I’m enjoying getting to know Pale Male’s new mate. On Friday and Saturday, I got to see a great deal of her and Pale Male.

On Friday evening she was on the antenna of a building at 79th and Fifth.

On Saturday, I got to see a great show. It began with Pale Male eating a Blue Jay. After he was done eating his new mate arrived and they went up to the nest building. One sat on the roof and one was in the nest. It happened quickly and I could not tell who was who.

Then they moved further uptown. After a brief perch on a building on Fifth Avenue, Pale Male when to sleep on a tree at the base of Cedar Hill. His mate went to a nearby tree and played cat and mouse with a squirrel, before joining Pale Male on the same branch.

It was great to see them roosting together. I think she’s the one.