Christo - Part 3

I'm doing one more dedicated post for Christo, but he will always be remembered on this site. He is the one who started it all for me in terms of serious hawk-watching, which directly led to more expansive birding. He's responsible for me continuing to educate myself about wildlife and the environment, and I am forever grateful to him.

Just check out his magnificent bird! The photos above and below are from 2014.

This is Christo June 8, 2018 - I remember being really happy that I captured him in action as he took off after an intruder.

This is one of the last photos I took of Christo on February 13, 2025.

This photo of Christo flying past the moon with a crow was taken from Tompkins Square Park on January 26, 2018.

I was never sure what to do with this photo as the color and quality are not that great, but I thought it was funny to see Christo perched on the fence among the shoes. This was along Avenue A on April 18, 2022.

This scene of Christo on a fence holding a rat should be familiar to many people visiting the park. This is him doing his thing, making his way in a very urban world.

 

December 10, 2016

Zipping along Avenue A on March 15, 2017:

Nabbing a rat in the middle of the park, February 25, 2017.

Exactly a year ago, taking off from what would be his final nest in the ginkgo tree, March 12, 2024:

As Tompkins Square Park was the heart of Christo's territory, he spent most of his time in and around the park. This meant sleeping in the territory at night as well. He had several favorite roosting spots including a particular tree on the north side of the park along E 10th Street, the fire escape above Yucca Bar on Ave A & E 7th Street, and another fire escape on E 7th Street & Ave B. He would perch on the little bar that secures the fire escape to the building (see below). From that position, he could see the street, but after dark no one on the street could see him, and no one in the building could see him from their windows unless they stuck their heads out.

We can't forget how Christo had a talent for taking care of everyone in his world. He was a great dad, often "arguing" with Dora and Amelia about spending time brooding their eggs. He didn't seem to want to get up when it was time for a shift change. He also contributed equally to feeding the chicks in the nest. After the chicks fledged the nest, it was Christo who taught them to hunt and fend for themselves.

 

Christo's dad skills were not restricted to his own offspring. In June 2017, a fledgling from Brooklyn who had fallen from his nest, was introduced to Tompkins Square in the hopes that Christo and Dora would take him in. The plan worked. As I remember, Christo and Dora spent about an hour perched in a tree watching the new fledgling, who had been placed in the redwood tree inside the main lawn. After some "discussion" a decision was made and Dora flew off, indicating she had agreed to what ever it was they had decided. Christo then went into dad mode and cared for the new fledgling in addition to his own (they only had one that year).

 

The photo below shows Christo (right) supervising the young hawk as it learned to grasp food while simultaneously perching on a moving tree branch, a skill that must be learned. Christo spent the rest of the summer caring for the hawk, who came to be known as "Flatbush." I wrote a lot about the experience, which you can read about in my archives.

Winter/spring 2018 saw some drama as Dora was injured and had to be rehabbed for a few weeks before returning to the park. While she was away, nesting season began and Christo had no partner, so he took up with the resident female hawk from the Baruch Houses on Houston Street. She had apparently lost her mate, so Christo stepped up.

 

I visited the Baruch Houses as I'd heard about a pair of hawks building a nest there, and was stunned to see Christo bringing sticks and feeding the female! In the photo below, he is on the air-conditioner.

When Dora returned to Tompkins in early spring, Christo re-accepted her as his mate, but also continued on with the Baruch female. Neither that hawk nor Dora wanted to leave their own territories, so Christo flew back and forth between them, delivering food and helping to build the nests. 

 

This attracted media attention at the time and he was quickly labeled a "cheater" in an attempt to make the make the story more salacious. But the reality was the better story as Christo demonstrated his instinct to be the provider for everyone in his life. He was ready and willing to bring up two families if he had to. In the end, though, Dora had to return to the rehabber, and the Baruch female either found another mate, or went off to do her own thing, so Christo ended up that season with Amelia, who is the current resident female hawk of the park. You can read about some of the drama here.

 

Fast-forward to February 13, 2025: Amelia perched on the cross of St Nicholas of Myra as Christo takes off.

Christo and Amelia on May 31, 2023:

Christo flying in the late afternoon sun, March 6, 2023:

In Christo's honor, I've set up a page of videos taken over the years. These have been consolidated from my YouTube channel and can be accessed in the sidebar of this website.

 

To conclude, I'm posting my most popular Christo video which, for what ever reason, has over 5 million views on YouTube. I'm not a videographer, and I shot this with a point-and-shoot camera way back on September 9, 2014. I was sitting on a bench behind the park offices when Christo swooped in and landed right next to me. Startled, I stood up to back away and give him space. I started filming and had no idea what he was going to do or how long it was going to take.

 

The result is this unedited 5-minute video of Christo the hawk catching a rat. It shows his full hunting process and demonstrates his patience as he picks out the perfect prey before quickly catching it. The video has proven to test the patience of humans as I have received many complaints on the length, LOL. This is all real and shows the actual life of a hawk. In a fast-paced world where attention spans are near zero, Christo was a great teacher of patience, perseverance, focus, and Zen.

Christo - Part 2

This week, I'm continuing to focus on Christo, who went missing from Tompkins Square Park in mid-February. The park and neighborhood feel less alive without him, but his mate, Amelia, is carrying on and is proceeding with the spring nesting season.

This is a photo of the pair (Christo is on the right) from February 15, 2022.

The pair was often seen together perched on the dome of Most Holy Trinity church on E 3rd Street. They'd sit on the north side where they had a view of the park, four blocks away. In the photo below, Christo is on the right.

Here he is flying in the late afternoon sun. With his golden brown head, he looked really beautiful in this light.

The spring of 2014, when Christo and his original mate, Dora, nested on the Christodora was so special. People gathered on Avenue B to look up at the window where they had their three chicks and were amazed to see something so wild taking place right in the middle of the neighborhood. I heard from so many people telling me how seeing him touched their lives in a meaningful way. Christo had the power to connect personally with people and he brought us a lot of joy and happiness.

My favorite experiences with Christo were watching him raise his kids. He was very young himself when he arrived, yet he was able to teach his offspring how to be successful hunters. That first nesting year, he was so organized with the fledglings - lining them up on a tree branch and feeding them all together. He patiently picked up any food they dropped, and kept dinnertime neat and tidy. I always thought that if he were a person, he'd be a great roommate.

 

Here he is (on the right) feeding one of his fledglings on June 22, 2021.

Christo had many individual quirks, and one of them was his choice of nesting materials. He liked to strip the bark from the scholar trees that surround the main lawn of the park and use it to line his nest. He even stripped a few branches bare.

His other preferred material was seed pods from the redwood tree next to the men's restroom. Every year, without fail, Christo would take long strands of the seeds to the nest. I never saw Dora or Amelia do this.

 

This is Christo collecting redwood pods on January 28, 2020.

Last year, he surprised me by gathering redwood pods after the nesting season was over. This is him taking green seeds from the tree on July 5, 2024. 

Christo was a familiar sight on the ground within the park. The fenced-in garden areas provided him with safety when he hunted rats, and also enabled spectators to watch him do his thing.

 

This is him shortly after he caught a rat on February 6, 2017.

I grew up in a semi-rural area where I saw hawks all the time, but they were always soaring high in the sky or perched atop tall poles along roads. I never saw one up close until I moved to NYC, and being able to get to know an individual hawk is not something I ever thought could happen. While watching Christo in the park, people would tell me, "Oh, I see hawks in [insert other state] all the time. They're not unique." And I would respond by saying something like, "Yes, but when have you ever seen one catching a rat with the Empire State Building in the background?"

As I mentioned in my previous post, Christo made use of the bird bath that used to be behind the park offices. We referred to is as his "spa" as he bathed in it regularly, especially in hot weather. 

Sometimes, Christ even used it to wash his food!

 

This is him on February 15, 2018, rinsing his dinner rat.

Christo endured a few blizzards over the years, but nothing he couldn't handle. When the snow came down hard, he'd just hunker down on a tree branch and wait for it to pass. When ever there was a storm, I'd get worried and go to the park to confirm he was ok.

 

Here he is with his face covered in snowflakes on January 7, 2017.

Christo was also often seen atop the light fixtures in the park. Not only are they perfect bird perches, but they serve as good launching pads for diving after rats.

And, the lights helped Christo hunt rats at night. When the rats came out at dusk, Christo would be waiting for them. In his first few years in the park, I witnessed him hunting after sunset many times, which was pretty cool but I could never manage to get decent photos or video in the dark.

You can often see the hawks perched on the cross of Most Holy Trinity church at sunset. Amelia (and previously Dora) both liked to watch the day end from this spot, but sometimes Christo took in the view as well. Below, Christo and Amelia enjoy the sunset together on July 6, 2022.

These are just a couple of videos I never posted. The first is Christo and Amelia mating in the park on February 28, 2022. The second video is them hanging out on the cross of St Nicholas of Myra on March 2, 2022.

You can read up on Christo's history on my Tompkins Square hawk archive page. 

Christo - Part 1

I'm still reeling from the apparent loss of Christo, our beloved red-tailed hawk who called the East Village home for the past 11+ years. I still don't know what happened to him and, at this point, it's not likely we'll ever know. What I do know is he is not here, and his absence has left a giant hole in my heart.

This is my last photo of Christo, taken the afternoon of February 14 as he helped Amelia spruce up their nest.

This nest is in a new location within Tompkins Square Park. However, the pair have actually been practicing with this nest for the last 2-3 years. In August, after all the chicks have fledged and gone on their way, Christo and Amelia built this nest as (presumably) a bonding activity. By the time the leaves fell off the tree in the fall, the nest was gone. For what ever reason, the hawks decided to maintain the nest this last fall and have chosen it for the 2025 season.

 

Although the season began with Christo, his role has now been filled by a new male hawk. I'll introduce him soon, after I get to know him better. I want to be sure, though, that no one holds any animosity towards this new hawk. It's heartbreaking to see a new hawk carrying on where Christo left off, but he is doing everything he should be doing.

 

On my last day with Christo, he was up to his usual self, hunting rats in the park. Something I've always loved about him is how he would dive off of his perch and swoop right over my head to nail prey right behind me. He did just that on this day when he dove out of an elm tree and came right over my head to grab a rat in a bush behind me. He came so close, I couldn't focus the camera, so I just turned around and told him he was amazing, and he took his rat to a nearby tree (see below).

 

How did this all start? I had been watching hawks in the park for a few years before Christo appeared. It was normal to see immature hawks pass through the park in fall and winter during migration season. There was even an adult pair that attempted to nest in the park, but failed for what ever reason.

 

Then, one day in November 2013, two adult hawks appeared perched atop the Christodora building and stayed up there for an entire day. They seemed to be studying all the activity in the park.

 

At some point, the pair decided to claim the territory and cleared out all the other hawks. This pair would come to be known Christo and Dora, and the rest is history. 

 

(You can read up on the history of the hawks in my Tompkins Square Park Hawk Archives.)

 

After digging through my archives, this appears to be my first confirmed photo of Christo, taken November 14, 2013. Although immature hawks played around in the park on the ground, I'd never seen an adult hawk do this, so I remember this being an important moment. This adult hawk was different.

Later that winter, we finally caught the hawk pair perched on a fire escape on Avenue A where they could be viewed easily. I remember this as another significant moment because we could compare the hawks side by side and note their differences. Hawk-watcher and photographer Dennis Edge was there, and after some discussion, we surmised the hawk on the left was the male and the one on the right was female. Then they mated and confirmed our suspicions, LOL.

This photo also prompted my first post on the hawks, who were still unnamed at the time.

 

Now that the pair appeared to be settling in, we had to name them. Since the hawks were first seen on the Christodora (and they later began constructing a nest on the building), Dennis suggested they be named Christo and Dora. The names stuck.

 

We spent the rest of that winter being enthralled by Christo as he flew all over the park, energetically catching rats and collecting sticks for their nest. I'd never seen hawks doing this before, so I found his activity fascinating. He pranced all through the trees, breaking sticks, gathering leaves, and casting a spell over all who observed him.

Every moment was a learning experience for me, and may have been for Christo as well. When he arrived, he was very young and this could have been his first nesting attempt. He seemed inexperienced, but took guidance from Dora who supervised everything he did. He took sticks to her so she could see and approve them. If she didn't like one, she kicked it away and he fetched another. He had so much young energy and charisma, it was impossible to watch him and not be taken by his charm.

 

That spring, Christo and Dora successfully raised three chicks at the Christodora nest. In the photo below, Christo is seen feeding two of the chicks while Dora provides shade to the third who is behind her.

The residents of this apartment were generous in allowing a camera to be placed in the window. This provided us with valuable information as far as egg laying, hatching, and chick development.

 

This is one of my favorite photos of Dora and Christo.

Dora was injured in 2018 and had to be taken into rehab where she recovered, but not enough to be able to live in the wild, so she is currently an ambassador bird at a nature center in Long Island where she is well cared for.

 

Amelia took over for Dora and is the current resident female in the park. This is her (below, left) perching with Christo on February 13.

Christo has taught me so much about hawks, birds, and wildlife in general. He's shown me the complex relationships all the animals in and around the park have with each other, and how they all manage to navigate this human-dominated world. I don't know if Christo was raised in a rural or urban area, but he seemed to navigate the city with ease. 

The noise and bustle of the neighborhood didn't seem to bother him. In fact, Christo appeared to gravitate towards human activity; he liked watching the skateboarders and basketball (but didn't seem to go for hockey!), and he attended all the punk concerts in the park. The louder and shriekier the music, the better. People often asked me if the screaming and electric guitars drove him away, but it was just the opposite! My dream was to get a shot of Christo swooping across the stage during a Kembra Pfahler show...he came close by perching in a tree right above the stage during a performance by The Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black, but my dream shot never materialized.

And what of Christo's voice? His vocalizations were most often heard when he called his mate or kids to come get food, or when he was mating. Both instances were high pitched squeaks that could be mistaken for gulls. I was able to catch his serious "Red-Tailed Hawk scream" just a couple of times. Here is one of those instances from July 18, 2014, when he alerted to an intruder (another hawk) in the park.

I will do some more posts about Christo as I can't possibly fit all I want to say into just one, so for this one, I'll just add a few favorite images.

 

Here is Christo approaching Amelia on the cross of St Brigid's church on Avenue B.

 

I love this photo of Christo looking down at his chick in May 2019. He was an excellent dad.

This is probably my all-time photo of Christo as he drinks water directly from the General Slocum Memorial fountain behind the park offices. This was taken on July 24, 2016, during a heat wave. Christo would normally get his water from the bird bath, which had a fence around it, or puddles. Seeing him hop right up to the fountain, which sits in the middle of a pathway in an area full of active children and adults was just insane. I was almost too close for this photo, but I had no room to back up and he wanted that water so bad, he took the risk and ignored all the people who were standing right there. Everyone else was as shocked as I was and, thankfully, let him drink in peace. 

After seeing Christo do this, one of his kids later hopped up on the fountain for a drink! The young ones are always watching and learning.

 

This is Christo on the roof of the Christodora with the moon behind him on February 1, 2023.

I always liked this image of Christo hopping around behind the park offices, taken on December 14, 2014. That part of the park was his domain as he caught many rats in that area and had a favorite elm tree which he used as a kitchen table. He was often back there eating and resting in the shady tree, then bathing in the bird bath down below. Sadly, the big elm died last year and was taken down in 2024. The bird bath has also been removed.

Here is a close-up of Christo from April 29, 2017, as he swooped past me. He had beautiful eyes.

Here is an example of Christo drawing a crowd. He often used the park fences to perch on as he hunted, which placed him at eye level with people. Watching Christo hunt was an intimate experience—he invited us into his hawk world to witness what most people will never know.

Christo showing us his beautiful wings:

Christo was a master at catching rats. Red-tailed hawks eat a variety of prey, but rats were at the top of Christo's menu. Although he also caught pigeons, sparrows, doves, mice, squirrels, and even insects, his skill was nailing rats. I feel privileged to have watched Christo grow from the crazy young hawk who chased after every prey opportunity into an elegant adult precision hunter. 

If in the last decade you saw a hawk perched on the flag pole in Tompkins, it was Christo. That was his throne and no other hawk perched there.

I've worn this ring for the last several years. Christo meant the world to me and I know how important he was to many other people. He brought magic to our community and I will always be thankful for him being a part of my life.

So, where ever you are, Christo, know how much we love and miss you. I hope you're at peace and soaring free.

 

This is the music I hear when I think of him.