Saturday Hawks
On Saturday, I had a Cooper’s Hawk in the Ramble. It was easy to find because of a group of Blue Jays, and the lack of any birds eating at the feeders!
And of course, the required photographs of Pale Male and Lola, as well.
Category: Eagles, Falcons, Hawks and Osprey
Sharp-shinned Hawk and Eastern Screech-Owl
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.
Yellowstone and Grand Teton Bald Eagles
Bald Eagles were easy to find in the Lamar Valley and along the Yellowstone River in Yellowstone National Park and in Grand Teton National Park along the Snake River.
For someone who is used to having to brave cold winter weather up in Croton-on-Hudson to see Eagles, viewing them in summer weather was a joy.
Osprey Nest in the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone
One of the great surprises of my trip to Yellowstone was to find an Osprey Nest in the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone at over 7,000 feet of elevation. I’m so used to seeing Osprey on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean in the Northeast and in Florida, I never thought they would be so high in Yellowstone fishing and breeding in a canyon.
Madison Square Peregrine Falcons
Today one of my co-workers, called my office to tell me she could hear two Peregrine Falcons on the west side of my office building. The falcons had already flown off by the time I got to her office, but from the east side of our office building, I was able to locate and photograph one of them high atop 41 Madison at 26th Street.
Riverside and Broadway
I spent the early afternoon looking at the Riverside Red-tailed Hawk pair on Saturday. There nest is just off the Hudson River near 8st Street and looks great. Last year they laid eggs around mid-March, so the female should start sitting on the nest soon.
Other nests in Manhattan are doing well. Inwood Hill Park, Highbridge Park, St. John the Divine and 5th Avenue nests are doing fine. The Highbridge nest is back to its old spot.
The Central Park South pair is still there but I don’t have any details about their nest. The Houston female lost her mate last year, and may be nesting on the ConEd plant around 14th Street. The pair that was around the City College campus remains a mystery.
Sightings of hawks this winter around the north end of Riverside Park and around the Court House buildings on Center Street make these locations possibilities for new nests this year.
When leaving Riverside Park, check out the American Kestrels that have a scrape at 80th and Broadway. One of them is usually on the building south of Zabar’s or on the church at 79th and Broadway.
