Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are migrating through Central Park. They love Jewelweed flowers or other flowers with nectar. Great places to see them are the Jewelweed patch on the south edge of the Strawberry Fields lawn, “The Oven” — the cove on the Lake, the North Lobe of the Lake or the Conservatory Garden.
While leaving the Wildflower Meadow, I flushed an immature Sharp-shinned Hawk by accident. I was able to watch its wing beats and see its tail shape to confirm it was a Sharp-shinned, rather than a Cooper’s Hawk. It was just another reminder that summer was almost over. The light was already starting to fail, so the pictures aren’t that great.
It was great to see something completely unexpected. Migrations season can be like that. You think you know what to expect and then you’ll see something unusual.
I did get to see one of the Eastern Screech-Owls in their roost tree. They really seem to have settled down again now that most of the tree removal work is done.
The Riverside father was the only hawk seen this afternoon in Riverside Park. Neither youngster (the one born in the park or the visitor from Sunday) was found, although the Riverside fledgling had been seen in the morning.
Since I slept in, here are the pictures of the father. He was east of the Warsaw Ghetto Memorial.
Much to the surprise of those of us hawk watching on late Sunday afternoon, a second, unrelated juvenile was in the park. While this isn’t unusual this time of year, as young hawks go exploring, it certainly was unexpected.
This young hawk is less bulky than the Riverside youngster. It doesn’t have the linebacker like shoulders of the Riverside hawk, has a tail that seems to rest in two groups, and has very different head markings.
But it will certainly change how we observe the hawks in the park. When someone says, I saw the young hawk, we’ll now have to ask, “Which one?”.
On Labor Day weekend, the Riverside Park fledgling has been very active in the 90’s of Riverside Park. I caught up with the fledgling on Sunday as it came to greet its father, who would have nothing to do with fledgling and let out a loud cry warning the fledgling to go away. (The fledgling had flown out of a tree on the Joan of Arc traffic island to join its father.)
The father then caught a rodent and consumed it in a tree near Riverside Drive and 94th Street. (Graphic pictures of the rodent being eaten below — viewer beware.)
I then went further south to catch up with the fledgling. He was all over the area around the Hippo playground. He caught a rodent, went after other prey and moved about constantly giving those watching him a workout.
I’ve been going through all of my old photographs and I wanted to share a field mark that’s very helpful for identifying the male vs. the female at Riverside Drive. The male has a prominent black stripe at the bottom of his tale, while the female has only a hint of black.
The fledgling was seen again in the 90’s of the park on Saturday. It’s nice to hear it’s doing well.