Hatch time for Amelia and Christo

Tompkins Square red-tailed hawks, Amelia and Christo, hatched their first egg a few days ago, but the chick(s) are not yet visible.

We've seen feedings taking place, as seen in this short video of Amelia taken on April 20. You can see her dipping her head into the nest, but the little one(s) are still too small for us to see.

How many chicks are there? 

 

Don't know! We'll just have to wait and be surprised. Meanwhile, here are some images taken over the last several weeks as the hawks were brooding their eggs.

Christo and Amelia:

Amelia and Christo:

Amelia and Christo:

Amelia coming in for a landing - you can see Christo's tail sticking out on the left side of the nest:

Amelia brooding:

Amelia confronting an intruding squirrel:

Amelia has done most of the brooding, staying on the nest for hours at a time. Every so often, Christo would bring her food and she's taken it away from the nest to eat and stretch her wings. Below, Amelia takes off with a rat, compliments of Christo.

In this video from March 16, the hawks perform a nest-switch. Amelia takes over brooding and Christo flies off.

On March 22, Christo took over brooding and Amelia flew off.

And this one from April 3 shows Amelia taking over brooding with Christo flying off.

Brood time is generally dull, but it's been interesting to see the leaves changing on the tree. This is Christo on March 24 and the buds of the ginkgo are just beginning to show.

Amelia on March 31:

Amelia on April 2:

The leaves are really becoming visible in this photo of Christo on April 12:

Amelia on April 13:

Amelia and Christo on April 20:

The leaves are still growing on the tree, as well as the surrounding trees, and my favorite vantage point has now been obliterated by leaves. As the hawks began building this nest last July/August when the tree was in full bloom, I can't help but wonder if they chose this particular place because it provided a lot of cover. Of all the nest locations they've had, this one seems to be the most difficult to observe despite being in plain sight. Perhaps this was by design...