Fledgling hawks explore buildings and rooftops

The world of the Tompkins Square Red-Tailed Hawk fledglings is expanding as they go exploring beyond the park. They've been spending a lot of time on and around buildings that surround Tompkins.

This one perches on one of the towers of St Brigid's Church on Avenue B. 

After perching a while, the young hawk flies across the street to a building across E 8th Street.

Taking in the view from a building at Avenue B & E 7th Street:

From there, it flies across the street to the roof of St Brigid School, with the waxing moon in the background.

Off to the next rooftop...

Two days later, a fledgling is back at the building on Avenue B & E 7th Street, but I can't tell if it's the same hawk or one of its siblings.

The American Robin on the roof takes off after the hawk.

I love the shape of the wings as the hawk dives over my head.

This fledgling takes a little nap on a mesh chimney cover on 7th Street. I've observed previous fledglings resting in the same spot back in 2017, 2016, and 2014.

Another one gets pestered by a Blue Jay.

A fledgling flies east on 7th Street, heading for a new adventure.

The hawk family continues to do well, and it's great to see the fledglings growing stronger and more independent. More to come...

Fledgling hawks playing among the fireflies

The heat and humidity have been sucking the energy out of me, but the Tompkins Square hawk fledglings seem impervious to this sultry summer. They've been spending time in the shade, as seen in the photo below where all three siblings are gathered in one of the gardens.

After their meeting, the fledglings began to play with each other.

On this particular day, the sky darkened and fireflies took over the lawns. The video below captures a moment when two of the hawks play while the fireflies flit around them. If you listen closely, you can hear the third sibling squealing in the background.

More summer hawk antics to come.

Hawk fledglings chase squirrels, catch prey, and play in a sprinkler

The Tompkins Square red-tailed hawk fledglings have really been spectacular the last several days as they demonstrate their ever-improving hunting skills.

The young hawks always go for the squirrels, who easily out-maneuver them, but there have been a few close strikes. The squirrel in these photos seemed to have no fear as it taunted the hawk, but its luck may change some day.

Those are serious talons!

This fledgling took several runs at a squirrel on a tree, but came up short each time.

However, the hawks have had success catching their own prey. This one grabbed a pigeon right in front of me. They have also caught rats and mice.

After getting so much exercise chasing prey around the park, this fledgling decided to cool off in one of the playground sprinklers.

These videos show the hawk's thorough bathing process.

After the shower, the hawk flew up to a fence to dry off. Seeing them use the sprinklers is something I look forward to each year.

I'm really happy to see this trio making so much progress seeing as they have only been out of the nest for less than a month. The time flies quickly, so if you're passing through the park in the next couple of weeks, be sure to seek them out before they decide to take off on their own.