I finally caught up with NJ 30, the banded hawk which may have been one of the juveniles from the Washington Square nest, in Battery Park today. It was great to see the hawk.
After loosing track of it, but finding the park’s Wild Turkey and an American Kestrel, I saw two Red-tailed hawks high in the sky. It was hard to tell if they were friend or foe and I couldn’t tell if one of the hawks was NJ30. But it was good to see that the area had more than just one Red-tail.
A quick ride on the A Train to 145th Street and a short walk through a wonderful area of restored Brownstones brings you to Shepard Hall on the uptown C.C.N.Y. campus. This year there are two eyasses on the nest.
This Gothic building yields another wonderful nest location in Manhattan. For more detailed information and photographs of this nest, see The Origin of the Species blog.
At the base of the Astoria Queens side of the RFK Bridge is an established nest of Red-tailed Hawks. It’s one of the easiest nests to watch in the city and this year has at least two eyasses.
On the Northeast light post of the soccer field north of Icahn Stadium is the 2013 Randalls Island Red-tailed Hawk nest. The female of the nest was sitting on the eggs. She sat low on the nest and when she settled in after getting in did the back and forth wiggle a brooding mother does.
So, I don’t thing we’ve had a hatch yet out on Randalls Island.
The pair that has been trying to build a safely located nest on Central Park West has found a new nest location on top of an air conditioner on between 87th and 88th Street.
A second clutch is unusual for Red-tailed Hawks, although we have seen it in the city before. It will be interesting to see if this pair attempts one this year.
Terence Cardinal Cooke Health Care Center is at 106th and Fifth Avenue. This winter I’ve frequently seen a hawk on top of the building. I didn’t think much of it, since we usually have a few wintering hawks in the north part of the park.
Today, I was surprised to see not one but two hawks on the building. Before I could get my camera out, the male flew off, circled the hill with the compost heap, and returned to the building and copulated with the female.
My first thought was these could be the Central Park West hawks? But both seem lighter both in eye color and in chest banding. The couple looks young. Anyone seen nest building on upper Fifth Avenue?
