Interesting hawk activity in Tompkins Square

An interesting hawk drama played out Tuesday evening in Tompkins Square Park.

It began when I saw one red-tailed hawk fly into a tree above my head. A half second later, Amelia flew by clutching a pigeon. She landed in a tree about 50 feet away from the first hawk. 

Amelia took the pigeon to another tree where she quickly ate it, then quietly perched on a branch.

 

I went back to the first hawk, assuming it would be her mate, Charlie, but it turned out to be a juvenile.

 

As Amelia seemed to be cool with this young hawk close by, I wondered if it could be one of her offspring from this last season.

I really have no way of confirming the identity of any of the fledglings, and it's a bit late in the year for any of them to still be hanging around, so I was intrigued.

This young hawk seemed pretty comfortable in this environment, and spent about a half hour watching squirrels and pigeons on the ground.

Eventually, the young hawk dove after some pigeons, but missed and ended up in a tree about 100 feet further away.

From its new perch, the young hawk studied the prey situation. The sun had just set, and the rats were emerging from their burrows.

In a flash, the young hawk dove down and caught a small rat in the garden area near the tree where I first saw it perched.

All seemed well until I heard the deep hoarse red-tailed hawk scream of Amelia. She did not sound happy, and flew into the branches directly above the young hawk. The juvenile looked straight up at her and remained absolutely frozen for 15-20 minutes. Amelia let out 4-5 more screams and the juvenile did not take its eyes off her. I've never seen a standoff go on for so long.

It looked to me like Amelia was okay having this youngster around until it caught food in her territory. The young hawk dared not move, or she would likely chase it. Then again, Amelia did not want to come any lower - she does not come to the ground like Charlie (and Christo before him) will do. I saw her catch a rat on the ground in the park exactly once, and that was soon after her arrival in 2018. She does the majority of her hunting by grabbing pigeons off rooftops.

 

Anyway, Amelia tried her best to scold the juvenile and intimidate it into leaving, but it held its ground and didn't move. Eventually, Amelia flew to a tree about 100 feet away and screamed at it from there. At some point, the young hawk felt safe enough to start eating. It stayed on the ground as I think if it took its food to a tree, Amelia would have come after it. 

 

I expected Charlie to show up, but I never saw him, so I guess he was busy. As it became dark, the young hawk took off to the other side of the park, presumably to roost for the night.

 

 

Amelia, Charlie, and a surprise Bald Eagle

I was happy to catch Tompkins Square Red-Tailed Hawks, Charlie and Amelia, perched together on the church cross at Avenue A & 10th Street this last Sunday evening.

Charlie is on the left while Amelia is on the right. 

Charlie moves to the top spot.

This has always been a favorite hawk perch and its comforting for me to see them there just hanging out and appearing to enjoy each other's company at the end of the day.

Eventually, Charlie took off to chase some pigeons, and ended up perched on a rooftop pipe a block down the street.

Amelia remained on the church and I stayed with her until the sun disappeared, at which time she took off to go roost somewhere north of the park.

Meanwhile, there are raptors to be seen in other parts of the city. This is an adult Red-Tailed Hawk in Queens, her crop full of dinner.

This was an exciting surprise. I was in Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn on Saturday and saw a shadow move across the landscape. I looked up to see this Bald Eagle flying in over Sylvan Water.

The eagle scanned the ground as it sailed in, perhaps looking for prey.

After the dramatic entrance, the eagle flew up into a tree where it perched for about an hour.

This eagle has an interesting dark-tipped tail, which is helpful for identification. I hope it sticks around and makes more appearances.

 

Mid-October birds - Part 2

Following the first segment of October birds earlier this week, below are some more October highlights. Yellow, olive, brown and gray are the colors of fall bird migration, which coordinates well with the changing colors of the trees.

Female American Redstart: 

Ruby-Crowned Kinglet:

I really love these guys. They're active, cute, and don't seem to mind me photographing them.

Pine Warbler:

Common Yellowthroat:

Yellowthroats are another fave of mine. They're not shy and are pretty no matter the season.

This was my first time seeing a Brown Thrasher in Bryant Park.

The Thrasher was accompanied by a Wood Thrush, another first for me in that park.

Palm Warbler:

Palm Warblers can look kind of drab this time of year, but some retain their bright yellow color. This one caught and ate an insect.

For some reason, I see more Blackpoll Warblers in the fall than I do in the spring.

Black-and-White Warbler:

The only bird that may be cuter than the Ruby-Crowned Kinglet is the Golden-Crowned Kinglet.  For me, they're also much harder to photograph.

Put up a rope fence and you're almost guaranteed to attract an Eastern Phoebe. I spent an afternoon watching several hawking insects from this rope perch.

The most elusive bird in this batch is the Yellow-Breasted Chat. They prefer the shadows and are often challenging to photograph.

Check out Birdcast to see when birds are expected to move through the area over the next few days.

 

 

Mid-October birds - Part 1

This week looks to be good for bird migration along the East Coast. Over the last several days, there has been a big influx of sparrows across the NYC area, as well as thrushes and kinglets. Although most warblers are leaving the area, many can still be found as they head south for the winter.

Below are some highlights from the last few days.

Northern Parula: 

Ruby-Crowned Kinglet:

American Redstart:

Black-Throated Blue Warbler:

Magnolia Warbler:

Yellow-Rumped Warbler:

Swamp Sparrow:

Lincoln's Sparrow:

White-Throated Sparrow:

Female Rose-Breasted Grosbeak:

Immature Red-Tailed Hawk:

Red-tails live in the city year-round, but this is the time of year we see many young hawks migrating through the area. Some may stay the winter.