Category: Other Red-tailed Hawks

927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks, Other Birds, Other Red-tailed Hawks, Southern Central Park Red-tailed Hawks, St. John/Columbia Red-tailed Hawks

Saturday Marathon

I ran all around New York City on Sunday.  Although spring hasn’t officially arrived, the city’s hawks are quite busy.

First stop was 888 Seventh Avenue.  I saw both CPS Red-tailed hawks flying around 888 Seventh, but they both went past it.  I found them on 1740 Broadway.  It’s great to see them being so urban, but watching them this season is going to be tough.

Then it was off to the Cathedral Church of St. John to see how the Red-tailed Hawk pair was doing up north.  The female of the pair was checking out the nest, which looks nicely refurbished.

I went back to the nest later in the afternoon and saw the male of the pair soaring over Morningside Park.

The female Red-tail left the nest and went in the direction of the projects at 103rd, so I walked down to see if she was on the Fredrick Douglas Houses.  No luck finder her, but since the Monk Parakeets were in the neighborhood, I walked west. 

The Monk Parakeet pair was busy ripping the nest apart.  James O’Brien, who had joined me for part of the afternoon, thought it was spring cleaning, since many of the sticks lying on 103rd were full of feathers and poop.  I got a note from Rebekah Creshkoff who reports seeing a third Parakeet near the nest an hour earlier.  So, it might be possible that a second couple is moving in.  Another early spring mystery.

After lunch, I went to see the Red-headed Woodpecker at Morningside Drive and 92nd Street.  While I was there, two Red-tailed Hawks flew overhead.

Pale Male was on a 5th Avenue railing,  He made a swift dive after a pigeon, failed to catch it, and went over to his favorite security camera on the Met.

She flew off to the weather station on the American Muesum of Natural History, before flying southeast.
Pale Male appeared on the Beresford.

Next I went to see our 86th Street winter guest, who will either leave soon or stake out this area of the park for the summer.

I was going to leave the park, but Jean Dean ran into me and encouraged me to stay and watch the lunar eclipse.

The timing of the moonrise meant that we saw only about half of the eclipse.  We saw the pale red moon in full eclipse, and then saw it slowly return to full brightness.
I left before it was fully over.  I had dressed for the warm day and not the chilly night!

Other Red-tailed Hawks

Like Clockwork on 86th

On Sunday, our 86th Street hawk made an appearance in the small meadow near where she sleeps around 4:15.  She moved from tree to tree, perched on a building at 89th and Central Park West, and then went back into the trees as usual.  It was too cold to stick around to see where she roosted for the evening.

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Other Red-tailed Hawks

86th Street Mystery Hawk Update

For at least six weeks, an adult Red-tailed Hawk has roosted in trees near 86th Street and Central Park West.  The hawk looks very much like Lola, but comparing notes with other hawk watchers, this is definitely not Lola who has been seen roosting in other locations.

Jean Dane, an avid hawk watcher, who lives in the neighborhood has been sending me updates. 

On January 8th she wrote, “Your division of Central Park into 59-72, 72-86, 86-97, and 97-110 makes a lot of sense to me, and does seem to be borne out by three known pairs in three known territories. My problem with the adult RT at 86th and C.P.W. is that I know for a fact that 86th is Pale Male and Lola’s turf, so couldn’t imagine for a moment that they would allow an adult outsider to be there. So I assumed that this “lady in red” HAD to be Lola (she is quite dark, like Lola, and also a little on the chunky side…). But if you’ve actually got confirmation of Lola on Beresford at same time this one is watching over little dish-shaped meadow at 86th/CPW, then we do indeed have an adult outsider staking out the 86-97 property: spectacularly fine lines these hawks are drawing here, no? – wow!

I’ve been checking every day, and she’s still there every day, starting late afternoon, occasionally moving from tree to tree in that little area. (Once I found her as far north as 103rd, just inside park at C.P.W., but that was about 6 weeks ago.) Your observation regarding cries bears out what I’ve seen and heard–there have been many many times that she screams even while perching (SEVEN yesterday evening from perches) – that seems unusual to me too, and makes it more likely, I think, that she’s trying to attract a mate (oh boy…).”

On January 15th, Jean wrote “Female RT was not in little football/soccer meadow this afternoon for half-hour at 2pm. However, on my way home at 2:30 I saw dark chunky female on top of water tank at 40 West 86th. Watched for another 10 minutes or so – no movement (also no yelling) – she seemed perfectly happy up there.

She could have been there all that time I guess – which, if Lola, would not be particularly unusual, but if Mystery Lady would be highly unusual, as I’ve not seen her on any buildings in 6 weeks, only trees in park: which (if Mystery Lady) makes it more likely she’s a country girl from up the Hudson somewhere, is what I’m thinking – no? Or maybe she’s been on buildings before and I’ve not noticed….

Anyway, new place to check, when you’re in this neighborhood: south side of 86th between CPW/Columbus – water tank on top of 40 West.”

N.B.  I’m a little more conservative when it comes to sexing Red-tails, so you won’t hear me saying “she” just yet.

After receiving Jean’s note, I went up to see the hawk on the 40 West 86th Street water tower.  These pictures were taken on an incredibly foggy and dark Monday afternoon.
A crow landed on the other side of the tower and soon the hawk was off.
The single crow (not in picture) chased the Red-tail to 5 West 86th Street, and then into the park.
The Red-tail took refuge in a thick set of branches and the crow exited the park via West 87th Street.
As is this hawk’s custom, it moved around from tree to tree around the small dust bowl of the unofficial playing field.
The hawk spent part of the time between the two playgrounds at 85th Street.

Jean sent me another update today.  “She was in her own meadow this morning, one of the trees nearest C.P.W. but by midday back on West 40’s tank – not on top like yesterday, but around the east side of tank near the BOTTOM. From several doors west of 21 West 86th you can see a rod or pipe that comes out near the bottom of the tank, between it and tallest yellow-brick chimney -that’s where she is now.”

The lesson here, is that like the Central Park South hawks, some city Red-tails actually enjoy the city more than the park!