Urban Hawks

July 15, 2012December 26, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks

Three out of Five

I spent about an hour around Cedar Hill in Central Park this afternoon and saw two fledglings and one of the parents.

The two fledglings cried and cried for food. With every set of fledglings, there is a period where they are capable of hunting, but they continue to beg for food. The parents, knowing they should be learning independence, ignore them.

Invariably, you’ll also see a newbie hawk watcher get all worried. They’ll ask “Do we need to feed them?” and I’ll just laugh. What is it about our culture that makes people think they need to help wild animals? These animals have taken care of themselves for millenniums.

July 13, 2012December 26, 2020Washington Sq. Red-tailed Hawks

No Place Like Home

Red-tail Hawk fledglings wonder farther from home base as the summer progresses. Hawks from the Washington Square family have been seen in Father Demo Square (southwest) and Union Square (north) this week.

So, I was surprised to find one one of the fledglings back in a familiar spot, the west side of Washington Square Park. The fledgling was doing some haphazard hunting, moving at least forty Rock Pigeons over and over again.

July 10, 2012December 26, 2020Washington Sq. Red-tailed Hawks

One Fifth Avenue

I only found one Red-tailed Hawk in the Washington Square Park area this evening. A juvenile was on the north side of One Fifth Avenue. I’m afraid we’ve begun the period where the youngsters are going to be harder and harder to locate!

July 10, 2012December 17, 2020Other Birds

Singing Sparrow

Over the weekend, I relaxed an hour outside of New York City as a guest of friends with a house on Long Island Sound. They had a wonderfully vocal sparrow that reminded me how the simplest of birds can be fascinating if you take the time to study them.

July 8, 2012December 26, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks

Further North

All three Fifth Avenue juveniles were on either side of the 79th Street Transverse this evening. One caught a rat all on its own and ate about half of it before having it stolen by a sibling. I didn’t see either parents while I was watching the kids.

July 4, 2012December 26, 2020927 5th Avenue Red-tailed Hawks

Fledglings All Get A Taste

The three fledglings all got at least a taste of a Rock Pigeon delivered by one of the parents. Two got real tastes and one only got a little bit of left overs. Both parents were seen, so the whole family was accounted for.