Eagles, Falcons, Hawks and Osprey Archives - Page 35 of 44

Riverside and Broadway

I spent the early afternoon looking at the Riverside Red-tailed Hawk pair on Saturday. There nest is just off the Hudson River near 8st Street and looks great. Last year they laid eggs around mid-March, so the female should start sitting on the nest soon.

Other nests in Manhattan are doing well. Inwood Hill Park, Highbridge Park, St. John the Divine and 5th Avenue nests are doing fine. The Highbridge nest is back to its old spot.

The Central Park South pair is still there but I don’t have any details about their nest. The Houston female lost her mate last year, and may be nesting on the ConEd plant around 14th Street. The pair that was around the City College campus remains a mystery.

Sightings of hawks this winter around the north end of Riverside Park and around the Court House buildings on Center Street make these locations possibilities for new nests this year.

When leaving Riverside Park, check out the American Kestrels that have a scrape at 80th and Broadway. One of them is usually on the building south of Zabar’s or on the church at 79th and Broadway.

February 7, 2009December 28, 2020Eagles, Falcons, Hawks and Osprey, Extralimital

Bald Eagles

During the winter, about an hour north of Manhattan on the Hudson River, you can find Bald Eagles. On Saturday, Teatown’s Hudson River Eaglefest 2009 was held along the river. I drove up with James O’Brien and Ben Cacace and we ended up seeing over sixty eagles! (We might have actually seen more, but we didn’t count the eagles we saw on the west side of the river to avoid double counting.)

We birded both sides of the river from Croton-on-Hudson on the east bank, up to George’s Island and Bear Mountain and down as far as Haverstraw on the west bank.

The early morning view from George’s Island Park.

The view across the river from George’s Island.

There was a nice mix of adult and juvenile eagles on the river.

If you count closely, you’ll see ten eagles out on the river. This photo was taken about two miles south of Bear Mountain Bridge on the east side of the river.

Eagles were not the only ones riding the ice, the Greater Cormorants were too.

February 6, 2009December 24, 2020Eagles, Falcons, Hawks and Osprey

Cooper’s Hawk Roosts In The Same Tree For Over A Month

The Cooper’s Hawk that has been consistantly roosting in one tree on a hill by the Lake, was there again tonight. When I arrived it was chasing off another Cooper’s Hawk from the area, but soon settled in for the night. This makes it over a month that the bird has used the same tree to roost.

January 25, 2009December 24, 2020Eagles, Falcons, Hawks and Osprey, Other Birds, Other Red-tailed Hawks

The Oven

The oven is a cove on the Lake of Central Park. It attracts a good number of birds during each season, including the winter.

Today, there were a number of birds, including a Red-tailed Hawk, a Hermit Thrush, numerous Northern Cardinals, numerous Tufted Titmice, and a Cooper’s Hawk that has been roosting in the same location nearby since at least early January.

January 11, 2009December 24, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks, Eagles, Falcons, Hawks and Osprey, Other Red-tailed Hawks

Central Park Hawks After The Snow

On Sunday, I spent the late afternoon looking for Long-eared Owls without success. But I did run into a few hawks.

On the Beresford Apartments, was Pale Male in the oval window, and Lola soaking up the sun on a south facing ledge.

This young hawk was in the Ramble making its way between the official and the not so official bird feeders looking for customers to eat.

This Sharp-shinned Hawk, with prey in talons, was being chased by a Red-tailed Hawk near 69th Street and the West Drive. The Sharp-shinned Hawk evaded the Red-tail and got away with its prey. Everything happened too fast for me to capture the action, but it reminded me that winter is the time to see lots of raptors in New York City.