Springtime is fast approaching and East Village red-tails, Christo and Amelia, have been working hard preparing for egg-laying time. Looking back at the last several nesting seasons, Amelia generally lays her first egg in the second week of March, except for 2020, when she laid the first egg on March 4. That year turned out to be a successful one for the hawks, with three successful fledges.
Fingers crossed this year goes well for them, although I am worried about the imminent construction project that is set to take place in Tompkins Square Park this month, which will entail tearing down the building that houses the restrooms and park offices. I have no idea how the disruption will affect the hawks, but it's probably good that they relocated their nest this year, and it is further away from the construction zone than their previous nest.
A few days ago, I caught Christo flying up to Amelia who was perched on the cross of St Nicholas of Myra church on Avenue A.
It's quite a feat to balance up there in the gusting wind. Note how Christo keeps his talons curled in so he doesn't stab Amelia in the back.
A peeping pigeon passes by...
When he was done (about four seconds later, lol ) Christo leap-frogged over Amelia and landed in front of her.
Here are some photos I never got around to posting earlier. This is Amelia on the cross of St Brigid's church.
This is Christo taking off from the same cross on a different day.
Amelia soaring:
Here she is back at St Brigid's.
And here is the pair on the cross of Most Holy Redeemer, as seen from the park.
Spring officially starts March 20 and I hope that by that time, Amelia will be tucked in her nest, brooding a clutch of eggs.
The week of Valentine's Day is generally the time of year we see our local hawks begin to display mating behavior, and Tompkins Square red-tails, Amelia and Christo, are right on schedule.
This was the scene on Valentine's Day. The mating is so quick, I almost missed it.
The pair has been seen mating atop the Christodora building.
Here is some video of bonding activity on the rooftop. Please forgive the shaky camera work on this video - I was without a tripod on this day and I was zoomed in from a million miles away.
Amelia on the left, Christo on the right:
This photo of Amelia was taken today as she basked in the sun (66°F in February!).
As she perched, Christo flew in and they mated again (note her giant crop - stuffed with pigeon!).
Amelia all fluffed up:
The mating is taking place as the hawks build a new nest for this season. Here, Christo carries a stick:
The pair have chosen a new location this year. They've returned to a tree they've used in the past, but their nest is in a new place within the tree.
I saw the hawks building the foundation for this nest back in July/August 2022 when their fledgling was still around. They then ignored it until early January when they decided to go all out with construction. Last year's nest is still intact, but I have not seen them pay any attention to it.
Christo:
The new nest is higher than previous locations, so the hawks likely have a good view from up there. As for us human observers, I suspect we won't be able to see much once the leaves on the tree grow in. When I saw the hawks working on this last summer, this part of the tree was entirely hidden and the hawks could not be seen at all when they were inside. If they are after more privacy, I'm happy for them.
Amelia:
Christo carrying a stick to the nest in January:
Amelia on the nest in January:
Christo:
Amelia today, practicing some yoga:
Amelia and Christo today, after the sun dropped behind some clouds:
So, what's next? If all goes well, we'll continue to see Christo and Amelia mate and work on their nest for the next few weeks, and we can expect egg-laying in early to mid-March. Hatch time is usually late April or early May.
For nest notes from previous years, see the table on my Tompkins Square Hawk Archives. On that page, you will also find links to hawk posts by year (2011-2023).
We welcomed the Year of the Rabbit by attending the Super Saturday Chinese Lunar New Year celebration in Chinatown this last weekend. The streets were closed to traffic, and several groups with drummers and costumed dancers made their way from business to business, putting on some wonderful performances.
Crowds filled the streets while drummers and lions snaked around the neighborhood in a kind of ordered chaos. The temperature was only about 16°F outside, but everyone kept moving, creating a fun heated energy. All the dancers were amazing.
In this video, a business proprietress offers the monster Nian some confetti in exchange for a blessing.
The monster costumes were all different colors and elaborately decorated. The one below has a bejeweled bird on its head. And those eyelids could open and close!
Another dragon blesses a business with good luck:
The intersection of Mott and Mosco streets was the heart of the celebration when I was there. Several performers gathered and the crowd grew more intense.
Five monsters dance on Mott Street:
Monsters and drummers visit businesses on Pell Street:
Deafening fire crackers filled the streets with clouds of smoke.
I tried to capture the insane firecracker noise in this video. How many cell phones can you count? LOL.
Confetti rained down everywhere as all the monsters gathered for one last hurrah before nightfall.
"The rabbit is the symbol of longevity, peace, and prosperity in Chinese Culture, thus 2023 is predicted to be a year of hope."
- Shen, I. (2023, Jan.). Lunar New Year 2023—Hopping into the Year of the Rabbit!. Cartus.com
Earlier this week, Tompkins Square red-tailed hawks, Amelia and Christo, perched on the Christodora building as the moon rose behind them.
It's always a race against the moon when this situation occurs - as the moon moves, the angle of viewing changes and it can be a challenge to keep the birds visible in front of it. On this day, the hawks were kind enough to sit still for a lengthy period of time.
Amelia:
Christo:
I took a short video to show how far away I was and the difficulty of photographing at this distance with trees in between. The video shakes because I was shooting at 1365mm without a tripod.
