86th and WEA Peregrine Falcons, Eagles, Falcons, Hawks and Osprey

More West End Avenue

After two visits without seeing the Peregrine Falcons at 86th and West End Avenue, I had good luck today. The banded female was on the north side of 530 West End Avenue, perched on a railing on the top floor. After about twenty minutes, the male arrived and ate a Rock Pigeon on 257 West 86th Street. After the male was done with the meal it moved the tower of St. Paul & St. Andrew United Methodist Church. When I left, the female had not moved and was still on 530 West End Avenue.

86th and WEA Peregrine Falcons, Eagles, Falcons, Hawks and Osprey

86th Street and West End Avenue Peregrine Falcons

I finally went in search of the Peregrine Falcons that have been seen on the West Side around 86th and West End Avenue. When I arrived, I heard them and found one perched on the St. Paul & St. Andrew United Methodist Church’s tower. Then its mate arrived with prey, and perched on the SW corner of 257 West 86th Street. After the prey was eaten, the falcon that was on the church, flew to 257 West 86th Street and perched a few floors down from the other falcon. Then when I was distracted both flew off and I couldn’t relocate them.

One of the two hawks in banded. On its left leg, there is a bicolored Black over Green band with white lettering of 77 above and BV below. The right leg has a traditional silver Federal USGS bird band ending in 768.

Update: I’ve received some information. Someone responded to this post on my Urban Hawks Facebook page that the band 77/BV is from Du Bois Library, at University of Massachusetts, Amherst, with a link to a photo of when she was banded in 2019.

2nd Update: A female juvenile Peregrine Falcon was found trapped in a courtyard at 522 West End Avenue (between 85th and 86th Street), earlier this year. (This is a common problem in NYC, as young birds follow Rock Pigeons into tight spaces, and can’t fly out.) Its parents/scrape could not be found, so the bird was sent to the Wild Bird Fund, and then out to the Raptor Trust in New Jersey. The juvenile was banded with a standard USGS band: 1947-45321 and a Black/Green auxiliary band BA/42. So, the adults seen a few days ago may have been parents earlier this year.

Eagles, Falcons, Hawks and Osprey

El Dorado Peregrines

The El Dorado Peregrine Falcons have been very active over the last week. I caught up with them over the last few days. It was great to find some new perches and a feeding spot on 88th Street I hadn’t noticed before.

If and where this pair has been breeding is unknown. There were reports of a pair further west this year, and a young bird was found from an unknown nest on the Upper West Side earlier this year, so it is possible that this pair is nesting a few blocks to the west. However, the mystery hasn’t been solved as of yet.

927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks

Pale Male Eats A Rat

On Sunday morning, Pale Male waited patiently across from the Maintence Bathrooms and gently dropped 20 feet to catch a brown rat. He then ate the rat in about 8 minutes.

Rodents have overwhelmed the Ramble in Central Park this year, due to the careless overfeeding of birds, rodents and raccoons. The birds being fed are primarily non-native species of House Sparrows, Rock Pigeons and European Starlings and rodents, be are both Gray Squirrels and Brown Rats. I’ve been keeping track of those who feed birds in such a small area and I estimate that at over a gallons of seed, bread and peanuts is now thrown on the ground each day.

All of this food has created an environmental collapse of the Ramble. The rodents are competing against ground and cavity roosting and nesting native birds. And the non-native species of birds are also competing against our native species.

Using snare traps or non-invasive methods to kill the brown rats, such as dry ice, could be used safely but with all of the food being distributed in the Ramble, the rats will quickly return.

As my mother said, “God help us from do gooders”. The solution to this problem is going to be a tough battle, as those doing the feeding believe they are helping the birds. I hope the Central Park Conservancy along with the Urban Park Rangers and the Park Department’s Wildlife unit can work to educate the public.

Just adding for signage, along with educational materials would be helpful. Years ago, city parks had signs that said “Feed a Pigeon, Feed a Rat”. And in 2017, there was a campaign to discourage the feeding of wildlife. The wildlife unit should be encourage to expand their website to include a dedicated landing page about why feeding of wildlife isn’t appropriate, and signage should be expanded in Central Park with QR codes pointing park patrons to these website resources.

It needs to be noted that the bird feeding station in the Evodia Field managed with loving care by the artist, Frances Lee Rogers is not part of the rodent problem. These feeders are carefully designed to provide food during the colder season, for over wintering native birds, when natural foods are tougher to find. Birds flock to these feeders especially when snow or ice covers their natural foods and temperatures fall to extreme lows. These feeders are carefully managed to limit the amount of seed that falls onto the ground.