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.