Thursday, March 29, 2018

We're on egg-watch for Christo and Dora in Tompkins Square

The Washington Square Park hawks have two eggs so far, but we are still waiting for eggs in Tompkins Square. 

Last year, Dora laid their first (perhaps only) egg on or around March 14.  It seems all the city hawks nests are running a bit late this year, but Christo and Dora also went through the extra trauma of Dora's injury, subsequent absence, and then the introduction of Barucha/Nora.  Christo and Dora seem to have settled into a routine of nest-building, mating and eating together, so we can expect egg-laying any time.

On Monday, I caught up with Dora who was perched on the cross of St Brigid's church on Avenue B, just across the street from her nest.

Dora atop St Brigid's church

As Dora relaxes, her wonky left wing flops out, but it doesn't seem to bother her or affect her flying ability.  It's become an easy way to identify her at a distance.

Dora and her wonky wing

As she perched, Christo dropped in for some mating.

Christo and Dora mating atop St Brigid's church

A hawk mating ball!

Two hawks in one

If this scene looks familiar, you may remember that Christo and Barucha/Nora made their first mating attempt in this same location in early February.

Christo and Dora mating atop St Brigid's church

After mating, Christo left to go work on the nest and Dora rested a few minutes before taking off.

Dora atop St Brigid's church

Dora atop St Brigid's church

Dora

In addition to nest maintenance, Christo has been busy feeding both Dora and himself.  I watched him take a pigeon to Dora as she perched on a Village View building at First Avenue and 4th Street.  They shared the pigeon, but decided to fly all the way back to the park with the leftovers.  Below, Christo carries the remains to a tree where the two of them finished it off.

Christo with prey (mangled pigeon)

Not long after they ate the pigeon, Christo went hunting again within the park.  He posed nicely from atop a lamp post.

Christo posing on a lamp post

And then flew up to his favorite hunting lookout, the flag pole.

Christo on his throne

From there, he dove down to some bushes next to the men's room and quickly came up with a rat.

Christo with a rat

Dora and Christo together.  You can really see the difference in their size (she's bigger) and coloring.

Dora and Christo

Dora and Christo

When the hawks perch on the Village View building on First Avenue, we can just barely see them from the park.  When the leaves grow in on the trees, we'll lose this vantage point.

Dora and Christo atop Village View, as seen from Tompkins Square

I'm still on the lookout for Barucha/Nora.  Today, around 3pm, I saw a red-tailed hawk soaring over Delancey and Essex, but it was too high and the sky too dark to make a positive identification. I want to believe it was Barucha, but I can't be sure.






Tuesday, March 27, 2018

Dora reclaims her throne atop the Christodora

Saturday marked a milestone as it was the first day since Dora's return to Tompkins Square on February 26 that I saw her perched atop the Christodora building on Avenue B and 9th Street.  Dora has been perching on the much-higher Village View complex along First Avenue, but I suspect she was waiting for the construction crew to leave the Christodora before venturing back to its roof.  Dora has always been less tolerant of human presence than Christo, who doesn't seem to care about people being around at all.

Below, Christo perches on the ladder while Dora is on the peak of the roof.

Christo and Dora atop the Christodora

A few seconds later...

Christo and Dora mating atop the Christodora

Christo and Dora mating atop the Christodora

Christo and Dora mating atop the Christodora

The Christodora was the first place I ever saw Christo and Dora mate back in 2014.  And that was the first time I'd ever seen hawks mate.  We're fortunate to witness the most intimate moments of these urban birds.

Christo and Dora atop the Christodora

Later, Dora fussed around in the nest.

Dora in her nest

Christo did the same. He continues to bring sticks and bark into the nest and Dora arranges them the way she wants.

Christo on his nest

At sunset, Dora made a couple of nice close flyovers.

Dora

Dora

This is Christo diving off the Christodora, just before swooping up to the nest.  I have to believe the hawks enjoy these dramatic aerial moves.

Diving Christo

I spent a lot of time on Saturday and Sunday looking for Barucha/Nora.  The last confirmed sighting of her was two weeks ago when she and Christo circled over the park and Dora perched in a tree.  I looked at the air-conditioner nest in the Baruch Houses and, from the ground, it doesn't look like any activity is going on there.  It's possible Barucha found another mate or shifted her territory further south.  I'll continue to look for her as she could have another nest going in a different location.








Wednesday, March 21, 2018

Whole lotta mating going on

A fellow hawk-watcher told me he saw Christo and Dora mating during the snowfall in Tompkins Square this morning, so I trekked out in the storm this afternoon to see for myself.  By the time I arrived, Christo was off running errands, but I found Dora perched in exactly the same place she spent one of the previous snowstorms, back on March 7.

Dora in the snow

Some video from today:



Christo and Dora have been spending a lot of time together in the park.  On Monday, I caught up with Dora who was enjoying the late afternoon sun despite being mobbed by a pesky blue jay.

Dora and a pesky blue jay

Dora and a pesky blue jay

Christo soon brought Dora a rat, which she took to a nearby tree to eat.  As she did, Christo perched across the street and gazed her way.

Christo

Before Dora could even finish her dinner, Christo swooped into the park and pounced on her back.

Christo and Dora mating

Dora made sure to hang on to the rat.

Christo and Dora mating

Christo and Dora mating

With this much mating going on, Dora could lay eggs any time.  In the past, the Washington Square hawks have laid eggs a day or two before Tompkins Square.  As of today, the Washington Square hawks have not started nesting, but you can tune in to Roger Paw's blog for the latest updates on what is happening with Bobby and Sadie.

Christo and Dora

After mating, Christo went to work on the nest and Dora took her rat to a higher branch to finish eating.

Dora takes off with a rat dinner

Dora takes off with a rat dinner

I hope to have an update on the status of Barucha/Nora soon.





Monday, March 19, 2018

Christo and Dora getting serious in Tompkins Square

We finally had a sunny weekend, so I spent both Saturday and Sunday chasing hawks.  According to the informal poll I posted last week, "Barucha" appears to have beat out "Nora" for the name of the second female hawk.  The name reflects her territory and distinguishes her from Dora.

I visited the Baruch Houses over the weekend to check on the nest Christo and Barucha had going on an air-conditioner.  After a day of extreme wind on Friday, it looked like the sticks that had been on top of the air-conditioner had slid down one of the sides.  I wanted to see if the hawks would use the fallen sticks to create a more stable base for the nest.  However, I didn't have any luck seeing any hawks in the area on either Saturday or Sunday, so I'm not sure what the plans are for that nest.

Meanwhile, Dora has been very visible in the neighborhood, spending a lot of time in Tompkins Square as well as perches outside the park.  I was happy to see her sitting alongside Christo atop one of their old favorite hangouts on a 22-story Village View building at First Avenue and 4th Street.  Dora had no problem flying up there and soaring over the area.

Dora:

Dora

Dora

Dora

Christo:

Christo

Christo

Dora and Christo together in Tompkins Square:

Dora and Christo

Christo taking off:

Christo and Dora

Mating:

Christo and Dora mating

Christo takes a locust branch to the ginkgo tree nest in Tompkins Square:

Christo carries a stick to his nest

Christo in the nest:

Christo in his ginkgo nest

Christo catches a giant rat:

Christo with a rat

The rat was so big, Christo really struggled to fly with it, and he barely cleared the 4' fences around the park.  He and Dora shared this meal.

Christo with a rat

Dora catches the last rays of sun:

Dora

Flying down 8th Street:

Dora

Dora soaring high:

Dora

Christo and Dora have been mating a lot and continue to work on the ginkgo nest.  Dora is due to lay eggs any day, but I'm not sure about the status of Barucha at this time.  She and Christo were mating and sharing food a week ago, but I don't know if they will successfully breed.  Based on what I've observed over the last several days, it looks certain the Tompkins Square nest will play host to a hawk family this season.