Tuesday, November 24, 2015
Thursday, November 19, 2015
Raptor invasion
Last Sunday, I spotted Dora, the red-tailed hawk, flying unusually low over Tompkins Square near Avenue B.
She kept circling, then flew east, only to quickly return to a spot almost directly over the nest site.
She was followed by a Peregrine falcon.
In a flash, she barreled vertically, talons-first, towards the invader.
Angry words were briefly exchanged before Dora chased the falcon down Avenue B.
Later the same day, more activity in the sky over the center of the park grabbed my attention. Pigeons scattered, at least one red-tailed hawk could be seen above the trees, and there were at least two additional raptors. At first, I thought the falcon had returned, but I believe the newcomers were sharp-shinned hawks:
I'm not 100% sure that's what they were as they flew around so fast and it was hard to see, so if anyone knows better, please comment.
It's hard to tell from this photo, but the head is reddish brown and the eyes are yellow, so it's not a Cooper's hawk (which I kind of expected as one was hanging around this same area two weeks ago).
Meanwhile, Christo kept busy cleaning up rats.
Why, yes, he is pulling the head off this one...
...and that is, indeed, a rat's head in his mouth...
After Christo had finished eating, this ballsy squirrel scampered right up to him.
But Christo wasn't in the mood.
At sunset, both Christo and Dora perched atop the cross at Most Holy Redeemer church on E 3rd Street, surveying their domain.
In other hawk news, check out this incredible post by Roger Paw who witnessed a juvenile red-tail in Washington Square snatch a pigeon right out of a man's hand!
See more hawk photos on my Flickr page.
She kept circling, then flew east, only to quickly return to a spot almost directly over the nest site.
She was followed by a Peregrine falcon.
In a flash, she barreled vertically, talons-first, towards the invader.
Angry words were briefly exchanged before Dora chased the falcon down Avenue B.
Later the same day, more activity in the sky over the center of the park grabbed my attention. Pigeons scattered, at least one red-tailed hawk could be seen above the trees, and there were at least two additional raptors. At first, I thought the falcon had returned, but I believe the newcomers were sharp-shinned hawks:
I'm not 100% sure that's what they were as they flew around so fast and it was hard to see, so if anyone knows better, please comment.
It's hard to tell from this photo, but the head is reddish brown and the eyes are yellow, so it's not a Cooper's hawk (which I kind of expected as one was hanging around this same area two weeks ago).
Meanwhile, Christo kept busy cleaning up rats.
Why, yes, he is pulling the head off this one...
...and that is, indeed, a rat's head in his mouth...
After Christo had finished eating, this ballsy squirrel scampered right up to him.
But Christo wasn't in the mood.
At sunset, both Christo and Dora perched atop the cross at Most Holy Redeemer church on E 3rd Street, surveying their domain.
In other hawk news, check out this incredible post by Roger Paw who witnessed a juvenile red-tail in Washington Square snatch a pigeon right out of a man's hand!
See more hawk photos on my Flickr page.
Monday, November 16, 2015
Project Ginkgo update
It's been about a month since Christo and Dora began their ginkgo nest project. After a flurry of activity for a couple of weeks, I haven't seen them working on the nest recently. That said, they've been staying very close to it and keeping an eye on it. It appears to be a very strong structure as I've watched it blow around in the wind and it doesn't budge. This is good news as I hope they plan to use it come spring.
Here are some shots of the nest as it's progressed and the leaves of the ginkgo slowly turn color. Soon, after the leaves fall, the nest will be much easier to see.
October 10:
October 12, the leaves have been moved around:
October 17, many more leaves and the addition of a large stick on the right. Christo is barely visible in the nest:
October 18, Christo does some housekeeping:
November 9, the big stick is still there and the entire structure is pretty large:
November 14, the leaves in the nest and on the tree are starting to turn color:
A little closer, we can really see there are many sticks poking out from the bottom.
November 15, as seen from the east side of Avenue B:
I'm really impressed that the hawks put this together so quickly and without a base structure, like an air-conditioner. This nest is, in my opinion, in a good location and it will be interesting to see how it fares the winter.
Previously:
Late October hawk update
Project Ginkgo
Intriguing hawk news
Here are some shots of the nest as it's progressed and the leaves of the ginkgo slowly turn color. Soon, after the leaves fall, the nest will be much easier to see.
October 10:
October 12, the leaves have been moved around:
October 17, many more leaves and the addition of a large stick on the right. Christo is barely visible in the nest:
October 18, Christo does some housekeeping:
November 9, the big stick is still there and the entire structure is pretty large:
November 14, the leaves in the nest and on the tree are starting to turn color:
A little closer, we can really see there are many sticks poking out from the bottom.
November 15, as seen from the east side of Avenue B:
I'm really impressed that the hawks put this together so quickly and without a base structure, like an air-conditioner. This nest is, in my opinion, in a good location and it will be interesting to see how it fares the winter.
Previously:
Late October hawk update
Project Ginkgo
Intriguing hawk news
Thursday, November 12, 2015
Christo in pursuit of dinner
Monday afternoon saw red-tailed Christo going about his usual hunt for dinner behind the Tompkins Square Park offices.
He took interest in the rats running around under the shrubbery along the western fence.
Not satisfied with the selection, he flew to the 10th Street edge of the park.
As I had to run, I reluctantly left him to finish his business.
See more hawk photos on my Flickr page.
He took interest in the rats running around under the shrubbery along the western fence.
Not satisfied with the selection, he flew to the 10th Street edge of the park.
As I had to run, I reluctantly left him to finish his business.
See more hawk photos on my Flickr page.
Wednesday, November 11, 2015
Waste not, want not
Christo, professional rat exterminator, shows us how to picnic responsibly in the park.
Start fresh. A big healthy rat is best.
The skin might be dirty, so go ahead an peel it off.
It's customary to eat the head first and get it out of the way, but why not spice things up by turning the legs inside-out instead.
The bones are rich in calcium, so chomp those down.
All the tasty meat is gone, but what to do with the little rat rug that remains?
Ah, well, may as well devour it all!
Leave no litter behind.
Finally, clean that face...
A tidy bird is a happy bird.
Repeat, repeat, repeat...
Start fresh. A big healthy rat is best.
The skin might be dirty, so go ahead an peel it off.
It's customary to eat the head first and get it out of the way, but why not spice things up by turning the legs inside-out instead.
The bones are rich in calcium, so chomp those down.
All the tasty meat is gone, but what to do with the little rat rug that remains?
Ah, well, may as well devour it all!
Leave no litter behind.
Finally, clean that face...
A tidy bird is a happy bird.
Repeat, repeat, repeat...
Tuesday, November 10, 2015
Some love for Dora
I said at the end of my last post that Dora the hawk manages to avoid my camera. This is true...I see her often, but she is either far away, perched in a tree full of obstructive leaves and branches, or is just too quick for me. The closest I'm usually able to get to her is when she's perched on the cross of St Brigid's on Avenue B and 8th Street.
So I was really happy to spend some time with her this last weekend as she and Christo defended their territory against invaders. Some of these intruders were other hawks, like this Cooper's who thought s/he could get away with passing through Tompkins Square.
After sunset on Friday, the Cooper's flew through the center of the park and landed on a rooftop on Avenue A and 11th Street. It was only able to rest about a minute before a red-tail (who I presume to be Dora because Christo was in a different location at that time) came swooping in from the west and chased it up the avenue towards Stuyvesant Town.
I didn't see the Cooper's again, but did see at least two other traveling red-tails over the weekend. Christo and Dora's high-pitched hawk screams could easily be heard high above the streets.
Dora was spotted doing some border patrol along First Avenue, which seems to be the western boundary of their territory. They do/can go further west, but I most often see them sticking east of this line.
Here, Dora perches on their favorite lookout on top of the Village View apartments on First Avenue and 4th Street.
And here she is two blocks north, on Village View at 6th Street.
From here, she took off up the avenue towards Beth Israel hospital. I've often wondered if our hawks hang out on the tall buildings there, but I've never seen them that far north.
Another place I've seen Dora perched quite often is on the fence atop the Boys Club on Avenue A and 10th Street.
From there, it's an easy flight across the street to the cross of St Nicholas of Myra.
While up there, Dora screamed...
Christoooooooooooo!
Meanwhile, migrating jets were allowed to pass through hawk territory without incident.
As it was late in the day, and the park secure, Dora took off for parts unknown.
So I was really happy to spend some time with her this last weekend as she and Christo defended their territory against invaders. Some of these intruders were other hawks, like this Cooper's who thought s/he could get away with passing through Tompkins Square.
After sunset on Friday, the Cooper's flew through the center of the park and landed on a rooftop on Avenue A and 11th Street. It was only able to rest about a minute before a red-tail (who I presume to be Dora because Christo was in a different location at that time) came swooping in from the west and chased it up the avenue towards Stuyvesant Town.
I didn't see the Cooper's again, but did see at least two other traveling red-tails over the weekend. Christo and Dora's high-pitched hawk screams could easily be heard high above the streets.
Dora was spotted doing some border patrol along First Avenue, which seems to be the western boundary of their territory. They do/can go further west, but I most often see them sticking east of this line.
Here, Dora perches on their favorite lookout on top of the Village View apartments on First Avenue and 4th Street.
And here she is two blocks north, on Village View at 6th Street.
From here, she took off up the avenue towards Beth Israel hospital. I've often wondered if our hawks hang out on the tall buildings there, but I've never seen them that far north.
Another place I've seen Dora perched quite often is on the fence atop the Boys Club on Avenue A and 10th Street.
From there, it's an easy flight across the street to the cross of St Nicholas of Myra.
While up there, Dora screamed...
Christoooooooooooo!
Meanwhile, migrating jets were allowed to pass through hawk territory without incident.
As it was late in the day, and the park secure, Dora took off for parts unknown.
Thursday, November 5, 2015
Christo hunting in the park
Christo the hawk has been up to his usual habit of hunting in Tompkins Square just before evening. His method is often to perch atop the flag pole where he has a good view in several directions.
From there, he dives off to pounce on prey behind the park offices.
On Sunday, after unsuccessfully trying to catch rats in the back area, he opted for another favorite hunting ground next to the men's restroom.
This area was recently blanketed with wire in an attempt to keep the rats from emerging from their burrows. I wondered if this would affect Christo's ability to find food here, but I did see several rats running around despite the wire.
As Christo looked for the perfect rat entree, dinner was being served to the needy just a few feet away. He was totally unfazed by the crowd of people.
Christo must not have liked the rats he saw, as he resorted to a different vantage point atop the cell phone tower above the park offices.
Then he flew around the back picnic area some more.
Eventually, it became to dark for my camera, but he kept hunting after sunset. I've previously seen him successfully hunt in the dark.
You might be wondering why I have so many photos of Christo, but not Dora. She has a talent for avoiding my camera! I did see a lot of her this weekend, but she's either too quick for me or she perches in places where I can't really see her.
Here she is earlier in the day with Christo (she's up top) in a tree along Avenue B. They shared some lunch before he took off for his afternoon park patrol.
I hope to catch more of her as hawk season gets into full swing.
See more hawk photos here.
From there, he dives off to pounce on prey behind the park offices.
On Sunday, after unsuccessfully trying to catch rats in the back area, he opted for another favorite hunting ground next to the men's restroom.
This area was recently blanketed with wire in an attempt to keep the rats from emerging from their burrows. I wondered if this would affect Christo's ability to find food here, but I did see several rats running around despite the wire.
As Christo looked for the perfect rat entree, dinner was being served to the needy just a few feet away. He was totally unfazed by the crowd of people.
Christo must not have liked the rats he saw, as he resorted to a different vantage point atop the cell phone tower above the park offices.
Then he flew around the back picnic area some more.
Eventually, it became to dark for my camera, but he kept hunting after sunset. I've previously seen him successfully hunt in the dark.
You might be wondering why I have so many photos of Christo, but not Dora. She has a talent for avoiding my camera! I did see a lot of her this weekend, but she's either too quick for me or she perches in places where I can't really see her.
Here she is earlier in the day with Christo (she's up top) in a tree along Avenue B. They shared some lunch before he took off for his afternoon park patrol.
I hope to catch more of her as hawk season gets into full swing.
See more hawk photos here.
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