Introducing the new guy

It's been about a month since the new male red-tailed hawk moved in to Tompkins Square Park, and he is settling in quite well. Christo set a high bar for this new young hawk, but he is proving to be up to the job.

This was the photo I took on February 24 that showed me the male hawk hanging around with Amelia was not Christo.

This hawk has bright yellowish eyes, indicating he is young, and prominent white "eyebrows". But the identifier that confirmed this hawk was not Christo is the legs. Christo had brown markings on his legs and this hawk has none (see above, left). 

 

You can see the light eyebrows in the photo below. The male is on the left.

As they perch side-by-side, you can see the differences between Amelia (left) and the new guy (right). She is much broader across the chest, and has a darker head and eyes. The male also has more white on his throat.

Mating:

In many ways, this male is very similar to Christo, which is why many of us did not notice the difference right away. This young male actively worked on their nest, mated with Amelia, brought her food, and seemed to be going through all the same procedures Christo followed.

The biggest difference with this new male that I can see is his hunting style. He's very young (possibly only 2 years old) and he has the young energy that Christo displayed when he first arrived in Tompkins. This male loves to dive and he's been catching birds right out of the air.

He is the Greg Lougainis of hawks!

Diving down the side of the Christodora:

This hawk started out catching starlings out of trees. Last week, I saw him dive into the middle of the lawn like a Peregrine and catch a pigeon 20 feet in the air. He was so fast, I only saw an explosion of feathers.

 

The only other red-tail I've seen grab a bird out of the air was Dora back in 2017.

 

Here he is breaking sticks for the nest:

As for a name, I don't know yet. I've been calling him "M2" (2nd male) for now until he tells us his name. Christo and Dora were named after the building where they were first seen, and Amelia was named after Amelia Earhart because she visibly loves to fly (watch her on a windy day and you will see a happy hawk). If you have any suggestions, please let me know.

M2 is a handsome hawk and I have hopes that he will be successful here. His hunting methods are startling and impressive

 

Amelia (left) and M2 (right) perch on the roof of the Christodora.

This photo was taken from inside Tompkins and shows Amelia (left) and M2 (right) perched on the cross of Most Holy Trinity on E 3rd Street at sunset. At this distance, you can really see the size difference between the two. Amelia is (IMO) a large hawk, and this male is on the small side, possibly a bit smaller than Christo.

Amelia is brooding eggs now, so she will be spending the next several weeks mostly hidden in the nest. During this time, the male will be responsible for feeding both of them, so we will have the opportunity to discover more about him as he hunts in and around the park.

 

More to come...