927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks Archives - Page 84 of 91

December 17, 2006December 25, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks, Eagles, Falcons, Hawks and Osprey, Other Birds, Other Red-tailed Hawks

Christmas Bird Count

Central Park had its 107th Annual Christmas Bird Count on Sunday. (To accommodate various greater New York locations, the counts are held on various days before and after Christmas.)

The Count is a census which records the number of each species found in the entire park. There are seven
teams, splitting up the park into sections, Northwest, Northeast, Reservoir, Great
Lawn, Ramble, Southwest and Southeast. The teams all start at the South Pump House, split up to do
their section’s and then meet back at the Arsenal for lunch and the tally.

The mix of birders included all skill levels, from beginners to experts. So, if you don’t think you’re qualified for the event, don’t worry. Join in next year, everyone is welcome.

Marie Winn giving a portion of the Ramble team its instructions.

Our first raptor was this Cooper’s Hawk. It keep our initial numbers down at the feeders in the Ramble, which was free of birds as long as the Cooper’s Hawk was about.
(Most of my pictures I took were of the raptors we found. This, however, is not representative of our day. My photographs of the day clearly reflect my fascination with raptors, not the full range of birds we saw!)

Our second raptor was a Red-tailed Hawk by the area along the Lake called the Oven.

This is the same Red-tailed Hawk as seen earlier. It looks to be Pale Male, but I can’t be certain. The morning was cold and this bird had puffed up to stay warm making it harder to make an I.D.

Red-tailed Hawk just outside the park on a water tower.

New York City Park’s Commissioner, Adrian Benepe.

After the count, I went out to look for hawks in the Great Lawn area. I found this juvenile Red-tailed Hawk in a tree inside the Diana Ross playground at 81st and Central Park West.

After about twenty minutes the hawk moved about 20 feet east before moving from tree to tree about 100 feet north.

Then the hawk took off and was chased by an adult hawk up to the top of the Great Lawn.

When I caught up to them, the juvenile hawk was nowhere to be found, but Pale Male was there with a pose that said, “Youngster, this is my territory.”

December 10, 2006December 17, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks, St. John/Columbia Red-tailed Hawks

A December Sunday in Central Park

I entered the park at 103rd and Central Park West.

The Pool and the Loch were quiet, but there was noise to the south, so I went to the north edge of the North Meadow. Two adult hawks appeared. One went north out of sight and the other circled overhead.

This hawk may be the St. John the Divine female, but I can’t be certain. It flew south down to about 90th.

The hawk moved from tree to tree, not settling in for more than ten minutes per branch.

Blue Jays were making it difficult to find peace and quiet. The hawk looked to be hunting rodents along the west park wall, so I left to avoid interfering.

I walked along the Reservoir, through the Pinetum, and down the Locust Grove. In the Locust there were a number of squirrels making alarm calls. Fifty feet away in a tree on the Great Lawn was the cause, Pale Male.

He had been in the same tree for most of the afternoon.

Before moving to another tree that had the last bit of sunlight.

Lola was in her usual spot on the Beresford.

November 25, 2006December 17, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks, Other Birds, Southern Central Park Red-tailed Hawks, St. John/Columbia Red-tailed Hawks

Five Red-tailed Hawk Saturday

On Saturday, I had a slow start. I started in the Ramble trying to chase down the White-crowned Sparrow without much luck. I then walked to Turtle Pond and found a cute group of Buffleheads among some Mallards and Northern Shovelers.

Then I saw a hawk flying south of the Beresford. It was Lola, the Fifth Avenue female.

She landed on a water tower on south side of West 77th Street. The building is just west of the New York Historical Society. After about 15 minutes, she flew due east.

I thought she had gone to the Model Boat Pond, so I walked there. When I arrived I saw that Pale Male was on a building two blocks south of the nest location. (Lola may have stopped in the Ramble for a late lunch.)

Pale Male posed for pictures and then flew off towards the Met.

It was such a nice day, I thought I would look to see what the Central Park South hawks were up to. Charlotte was on the Essex House sign.

The nest still looks to be in good shape.

The Essex House boiler could use an overhaul.

Soon Charlotte went NW and circled around and then above the Trump International Hotel and Tower.

Then she landed on the top of a construction crane on a new building being built on Central Park West between 61st and 62nd.

Junior soon joined her. If I got it right, she’s on the top and he’s below her.

Having seen four of the six building-breeding Manhattan Red-tailed Hawks, I went up to the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine. My luck ran out, as I was only able to see the male of the Cathedral pair. However, five out of six isn’t that bad!

The Cathedral nest looked to be in good condition as well.

November 24, 2006December 20, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks, Other Birds

Friday in the Park

I made it to the park on Friday! Finally, a sunny day where I didn’t have to work. I spent a few hours trying to photograph a White-crowned Sparrow without success. I did see it a few times, but just as I tried to take a picture it would be scared off by a passing tourist.

Lola spent at least an hour in the afternoon on the NE tower of the Beresford.

Mute swans arrived on The Lake a few weeks ago. They are very good at getting food from tourists. I wonder if they spend the summer on an urban lake in Canada?

November 5, 2006December 17, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks, Other Red-tailed Hawks

Marathon Sunday

On Marathon Sunday, I came into a park full of runners. The marathon route goes right through Pale Male and Lola’s territory.

I walked around the Great Lawn and saw a hawk skim just above ground level from the center of the lawn to the eastern edge. The hawk grabbed a small bird and then jumped into a low branch of a small tree between two baseball diamonds. The bird was the immature hawk that Lola has been tolerating and to some observers, has even been playing with.

The immature Red-tailed Hawk just after catching a bird on the east side of the Great Lawn.

Note the immature’s stripped tail rather than a mature’s solid red tail.

The immature also has a very light eye color, which will darken over time.

Just after the immature Red-tailed Hawk finished eating, Pale Male came in to chase it away.

Pale Male landed in a tree on the west side of the Great Lawn and the immature hawk went northwest out of sight.

After looking for the immature hawks perch without success, I returned to the Great Lawn to discover Pale Male had moved to the East Pinetum.

Were he settled into a tree that was to be his roost for the evening.

November 4, 2006December 20, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks, Other Birds

Late Saturday Afternoon with Pale Male and Lola

There’s no doubt fall has arrived in New York. It was in the low 40’s, the leaves have turned to wonderful fall colors. Another sign of fall has arrived is the return of Buffleheads to the Reservoir.