Below are some highlights from the 2019 Raptor Festival, which took place in Central Park this last weekend. The event was hosted by the NYC Urban Park Rangers, who are celebrating their 40th anniversary this year. The festival featured a fantastic variety of raptors including owls, hawks, falcons, eagles and a vulture.
This is a Eurasian Eagle Owl, whose brilliant orange eyes gave me chills.
Check out those massive talons.
Compare the bright eyes of the eagle owl with those of the Barred Owl, which are very dark.
This is a lovely Black Vulture.
Her wingspan is enormous. Although I see vultures soaring over the city, I was thrilled to see one this close.
Bald Eagle!
This Harris's Hawk put on a lively flying demonstration.
Notice the differing patterns on her wing feathers - this hawk is molting from juvenile to adult plumage.
The colorful American Kestrel is always a crowd-pleaser. These little falcons nest here in the city.
NYC is also home to the fastest animal on the planet, the Peregrine Falcon.
This year, Raptor Fest included several birds I've never seen before, one of which was this gorgeous Aplomado Falcon.
And a Saker-Gyrfalcon hybrid.
The most unusual bird of the day had to be this African Crowned Eagle. Its size and presence were stunning, and everyone had to get pic!
Many of the birds on display were non-releasable due to injuries. This Eastern Screech Owl is blind in one eye and is in the care of Wildlife in Need of Rescue and Rehabilitation (WINORR).
Many thanks to the NYC Urban Park Rangers, Bobby and Cathy Horvath from WINNOR, and all the falconers who shared their beautiful birds and made it such a fun and educational day.
See many more photos from this exciting day over on my Flickr page.
Previously.
Join us as we chronicle the lives of East Village red-tailed hawks, Christo, Amelia, and Dora, as well as other New York City wildlife.
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
Thursday, September 12, 2019
Evening play time for Lower East Side hawk
One of the young red-tailed hawks featured in the previous post put on a playful show on a recent evening in East River Park.
Just as the sun was setting, I happened to spot the hawk high in a tree. I believe it is the larger of the two who performed the earlier sky dance, but I didn't see the second hawk to make a comparison.
After the sun slipped behind buildings, the hawk flew to a pile of bark chips.
It ignored all the people in the area, and I thought it might be looking for rats.
Instead, the hawk pounced on a chunk of wood and proceeded to play with it.
We've seen this many times before with young fledglings learning to catch prey.
After about 20 minutes of rousing stick play, the hawk settled down on an antenna with One World Trade in the background.
Dedicated to my father.
Just as the sun was setting, I happened to spot the hawk high in a tree. I believe it is the larger of the two who performed the earlier sky dance, but I didn't see the second hawk to make a comparison.
After the sun slipped behind buildings, the hawk flew to a pile of bark chips.
It ignored all the people in the area, and I thought it might be looking for rats.
Instead, the hawk pounced on a chunk of wood and proceeded to play with it.
We've seen this many times before with young fledglings learning to catch prey.
After about 20 minutes of rousing stick play, the hawk settled down on an antenna with One World Trade in the background.
Dedicated to my father.
Wednesday, September 4, 2019
Young red-tailed hawks put on a spectacular aerial display over the Lower East Side
I came across two immature red-tailed hawks putting on a spectacular aerial display over the Lower East Side the other day.
I've seen Christo, Dora and Amelia each go talon-to-talon with hawks, Peregrines, and Kestrels, but I've never seen anything quite like this. The pair flew together, chased each other around some tall buildings, then dove at each other without actually touching.
Above, the hawk on the right is slightly bigger than the one on the left. It had a full crop at the time, making it look bulky. The hawk on the left had a darker head and more dark brown speckling on its legs. They both had bright yellow eyes.
The hawks engaged in synchronized soaring and several tumbling displays. This went on for 15-20 minutes until this Peregrine appeared and broke up the party.
Fall raptor migration has begun, so we may see more hawks in the area over the next several weeks.
You can see many more photos of the hawks performing their acrobatics on my Flickr page.
I've seen Christo, Dora and Amelia each go talon-to-talon with hawks, Peregrines, and Kestrels, but I've never seen anything quite like this. The pair flew together, chased each other around some tall buildings, then dove at each other without actually touching.
Above, the hawk on the right is slightly bigger than the one on the left. It had a full crop at the time, making it look bulky. The hawk on the left had a darker head and more dark brown speckling on its legs. They both had bright yellow eyes.
The hawks engaged in synchronized soaring and several tumbling displays. This went on for 15-20 minutes until this Peregrine appeared and broke up the party.
Fall raptor migration has begun, so we may see more hawks in the area over the next several weeks.
You can see many more photos of the hawks performing their acrobatics on my Flickr page.
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