Urban Hawks

It was a very windy afternoon on Friday.  When I arrived the two adults were escorting a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk out of their territory.  We lost track of the adult female, but the male came into the park and made two loops around the park and made a trip to the top of the Chritodora House.  It’s amazing to watch hawks maneuver in high winds.  They move very fast with incredible control.

With thunderstorms expected on Thursday and the end of Daylight Saving Time this Sunday, today was the last day I could go birding after work until the spring.  So, I went to Tompkins Square Park and watched Christo (and Dora briefly) hunt in the park.  He caught a small rodent but didn’t really get a great meal.

I’ve been away at a conference for a week in Las Vegas.  I returned to the city last night and went down to Tompkins Square Park this afternoon. 

Christo, the male of the pair that resides in the park, fly into a tree next to me within minutes of my arrival at the park.  He then went hunting and caught a rodent.  He then ended up into a tree where he roosted for the night.  As I was leaving, I saw an Eastern Red Bat.

What a nice homecoming back to New York City.

The temperatures are dropping and Red-tailed Hawk pairs are returning to their old hunts.  Both hawks were in Tompkins Square Park this evening.  Nice to see them enjoying the park.