First glimpse of red-tailed hawk chick in Tompkins Square

[Update below]

Today we caught our first glimpse of a chick in the Tompkins Square red-tailed hawk nest after observing a hatch a week ago.

Until now, all we've been able to see is parents, Christo and Amelia, looking down into the nest.

Finally, today, a fuzzy bobble head appeared at feeding time.

Below, Amelia gently feeds the chick a tiny piece of meat.

In the videos below, you can see the little one bobbing up and down as it gets fed.

In about a week, the chick will likely be tall enough to see clearly over the edge of the nest.

Could there be more than one chick? Today, I could only confirm one, but there could definitely be one or two more. Last year, there were three chicks, so I'm hoping for more, but we'll have to wait and see.

UPDATE: As of April 29, we can confirm TWO chicks. Urban Hawks has posted some nice video showing Amelia wit the two little ones.

Hatch day and hail storm in Tompkins Square

Early Wednesday morning, it was obvious there had been a hatch at the red-tailed hawk nest in Tompkins Square. Most notably, the behavior of the hawks dramatically changed.

In the weeks leading up to that day, Christo and Amelia had a usual routine of brooding, turning the eggs, and switching places so Christo would incubate and Amelia could take a break and stretch. They continued this behavior through the evening of April 20.

Early the following morning, Christo perched on the edge of the nest while Amelia stayed inside. He appeared to be watching and/or waiting, something we've seen him do on hatch days in previous years. The hawks stayed in this position for over two hours, which is also notable. Finally, Amelia got up and the two of them fussed around with some food, Christo watching as Amelia tore it up, then went through the motions of feeding a chick deep in the nest. As she did this, Christo stayed close on a nearby branch.

Amelia:

When Amelia was done, she settled back down in the nest and I went to get some coffee. Christo also took that opportunity to go catch a big rat. We both returned to the nest and I took some video of Christo making the rat delivery. Amelia clearly wasn't ready for it yet, so after some back-and-forth, Christo took the rat away for his own breakfast.

After a while, Amelia performed another feeding. The hatchling is too small to be seen from outside the nest, so all we can see right now are the motions Amelia makes as she tears off a piece of food and feeds it to the chick below.

Photos don't show the feeding well, so I took another video:

Brunch over, Amelia stretches before settling back down into the nest.

Wednesday was a day of crazy weather, including a sudden hail storm. As the thunder rumbled, Amelia went deep into the nest and Christo, to my surprise, rode out the storm atop the cross of St Nicholas of Myra on Avenue A. I've seen him perch on high church crosses and the park flag pole for thunderstorms before, so I was concerned. Would he be struck by lightning?!?

In the video below, you can see and hear how hard the hail is coming down, but Christo pays it no mind.

The storm only lasted a few minutes, but it was enough to turn streets into rivers, and leave hail stones behind in non-paved areas of the park.

The storm also caused a spooky mist to rise from the ground, which blanketed the entire park.

The mist dissapated in seconds.

A minute later, it was as if the storm had never happened and we returned to a beautiful sunny spring day.

The rain and hail should not harm the hawk eggs or chicks as long as the parents keep them well covered. Both Amelia and Christo are experienced and skilled at being hawk parents, so I'm not worried. We have no idea how many eggs or chicks there are in the nest, but can expect 1-3 nestlings. It may be another week or so before we catch a glimpse of any fuzzy white heads peeking over the edge of the nest, so we'll have to wait and be surprised.

For updates on other hawk nests in the area, check out Urban Hawks, who covers several nests around Manhattan.

We're on hatch watch for Tompkins Square red-tails

We're on hatch watch this week in Tompkins Square Park for red-tailed hawks, Christo and Amelia.

The incubation period for red-tailed hawks is generally said to be 28-35 days, but our local hawks have always taken longer to hatch. I've put together stats from the last seven years below. 

Year               1st egg laid         1st hatch         # of days 

2021             +/- 3/13                      -                      - 

2020             3/4                       +/- 4/12               39 

2019             3/13                     4/20                     38 

2018             4/20                     5/25                     35 

2017             3/14                     4/18                     35 

2016             +/- 3/14               4/23                     40 

2015             +/- 3/23               5/1                       39 

2014             +/- 3/29               5/8                       40

 

Assuming Amelia laid her first egg March 13, today is day 37, so hatch could happen any time. 

Stay tuned!

Sounds of spring

It's mid-April, and we still have a couple of weeks to go before any signs of a hatch at the Tompkins Square red-tailed hawk nest. It's a dull time for hawk-watching as nothing much happens at the nest unless you're lucky enough to catch parents, Christo and Amelia, switching shifts for incubation duty.

This is a typical scene at the nest right now: Amelia hunkered down, face peeking above the edge of the nest to check out the activities in the park below.

She's always watching!

While the hawks continue to brood, it's a good opportunity to tune in to other birds that are moving through the city for spring bird migration. Some are just passing through on their way north, others are settling into the area and staking out their claims to nesting territories. About two weeks ago, I noticed a dramatic increase in the sounds of the birds. Suddenly, I was hearing many new songs to indicate spring is kicking into high gear. If you spend any time outdoors (anywhere), listen closely and the voices of the birds below can be heard.

The Brown-headed cowbird has a distinctive cluck flollowed by an extremely high-pitched whistle.

The Tufted titmouse makes a variety of interesting sounds, but the one I've been hearing recently is the two-tone whistle.

One of my favorite songs belongs to the Northern Cardinal. You can hear the distinctive pew-pew-pew almost anywhere in the city.

Not as loud, but still very recognizable, is the call of the White-breasted nuthatch. Once you hear it, they're pretty easy to spot moving up or down the trunks of trees.

I hadn't really noticed until recently how beautiful the color pattern is on the underside of their tails.

The call of the Downy woodpecker reminds me of a broken fan belt, and their hammering is surprisingly loud for such a tiny creature.

My favorite sparrow, the White-throated sparrow, has a melodious song that can be heard across the park. I am accustomed to their eight-syllable song, but recent research is revealing that the White-throated sparrow's tune is changing across the continent. Will the song we hear now be forgotten in the future? It's an intriguing study in bird behavior.

My other favorite sparrow, the Chipping Sparrow, makes a mechanical trill that could be mistaken for an insect. These sparrows are tiny, and can usually be found foraging on the ground.

There is a particular elm tree on the east side of Tompkins that is attracting American goldfinches recently. They have a sweet song that sometimes sounds like a question followed by an answer.

For me, the iconic bird song that says "Summer is on the way" is that of the Red-winged blackbird. The males of the species migrate to the nesting grounds first and battle each other for territory. Good places to see and hear them are around the Meer at the north end of Central Park, and Hammock Grove on Governors Island.

The other song that announces the arrival of spring and summer is that of the Song sparrow. This little bird can really belt it out, and they are often found in the same habitat as the blackbirds.

When Governors Island re-opens to the public for the season on May 1, I recommend visiting Hammock Grove and listening to the cacophony of Red-winged blackbirds and Song sparrows. Both species nest there and their voices can be heard throughout the island.

Cherry blossoms and brooding hawks in Tompkins Square

We're finally seeing some spring color in the city, and one of my favorite sights is the cotton candy pink blossoms of the cherry trees in Tompkins Square Park. Their appearance signals to me the arrival of all things sweet and fragrant.

 Note the amazing yoga pose of the woman in the above photo. I wish I could do that!

The cherry blossoms don't usually last long, and there is rain in the forecast for tonight, so relish them while you can.

As we enjoy watching all the flowers come to life around the park, red-tailed hawks, Christo and Amelia, are busy brooding eggs.

Amelia appeared to lay an egg on March 13, and the window for laying additional eggs has now closed. The hawks usually lay up to three eggs, but we don't know how many the pair have this year. We will just have to wait and see what happens over the next several weeks.

If you are interested in seeing what goes on in a live red-tailed hawk nest, I always recommend tuning in to the Cornell Red Tail cam, which documents Big Red and Arthur in Ithaca, New York. Big Red laid her first egg of the season on March 26, a second on March 29, and a third is expected at any moment.

Here in NYC, we can observe Christo and Amelia as they come and go from the nest, taking turns incubating. Below, Amelia takes a break to do some stretching.

She always seems to be on the lookout for sticks she can collect and add to the nest.

Below, she breaks off a twig from a locust tree.

Christo's main job during this time is providing food for the both of them. Amelia prefers pigeon over rat, and I caught him preparing her a pigeon dinner earlier this week.

Christo delivered it to the nest, but Amelia wasn't ready to clock out of her incubation shift. Below, Christo patiently waits while Amelia stays hidden behind some branches to the right of him.

When it became apparent Amelia wasn't going to get up, Christo took the pigeon away to a nearby tree where he finished it himself.

When he's not hunting and preparing food, Christo keeps a lookout over their territory from a number of favorite perches. Below, he sits atop the cross of St Nicholas of Myra church on Avenue A, where he has a view of the park.

Something caught his eye and he took off.

Christo continues to enchant me with his handsome hawk spirit.

As a bonus, here is a photo of a very friendly pigeon in the park. The distinctive coppery color of this bird is similar to the warm browns of the hawks, and this bird has gorgeous iridescent green feathers on its neck and a blazing orange eye. Look out for this beauty on the east side of the park.

Brood time for the hawks in Tompkins Square

As luck would have it, as soon as we published the previous post about being on egg watch in Tompkins Square, Amelia went and laid an egg. It looks like it happened either Friday night or Saturday morning, so we are safe to call it for March 13.

The hawks usually lay three eggs, but we have no idea what's going on up in the nest, so we will just have to wait and see. Going by the first egg date, we can expect a hatch in about six weeks, so around the end of April or first week of May. When that happens, we won't be able to see anything, but Christo will start bringing food to the nest. In the mean time, there won't be much for us to watch except for Christo and Amelia taking turns brooding.

Happy spring!

Playing the waiting game with the Tompkins Square hawk pair

We're still on egg watch for red-tails, Christo and Amelia, in Tompkins Square. The hawks appear to be pretty much done building their nest, so it's ready when ever they are.

I caught up with the pair a few times this last week and watched as they shared food, mated, and defended their territory against intruding young red-tails who are hanging around the area.

Below, Christo joins Amelia on a branch of one of the American Elms in the park.

We've enjoyed a few warm sunny days this week and I love how the late afternoon sun brings out the orange tones in the hawks' plumage. Below, Amelia rests on a locust branch as the sun begins to set.

She's joined by Christo, who swoops in for some mating.

Four seconds later:

That is Amelia on the left and Christo on the right. You can see Amelia is significantly larger than him, and her coloring is also a bit darker.

Amelia looks to me like she could lay an egg any minute. For those keeping track, below are egg-laying dates from the last seven years, going back to Christo's first nest on the Christodora building.

• 2020: March 4 - Christo and Amelia built their nest in a Honey Locust tree in Tompkins Square (same as this year)
  
  
• 2019: March 13 - Christo and Amelia built their nest in a Ginkgo tree in Tompkins Square
  
  
• 2018: April 20 - Christo and Amelia used the Ginkgo nest. The nesting season started late for the pair because Christo's first mate, Dora, had to be taken to a rehabber, and Amelia entered the scene in early April
  
  
• 2018: April 3 - Christo and Dora built their nest in the Ginkgo tree and they were seen brooding and doing a nest-exchange the day before Dora was rescued, indicating they had an egg
  
  
• 2017: March 14 - Christo and Dora built their nest in the Honey Locust tree (same as the current season)
  
  
• 2016: Around March 20 - Christo and Dora had their nest in the Ginkgo
  
  
• 2015: On or before March 26 - Christo and Dora hastily built their nest on a 12th floor air-conditioner of the Ageloff Towers at Avenue A and 3rd Street. This was after being evicted from the Christodora, where they attempted to rebuild their nest from the previous year
  
  
• 2014: March 29 - To the delight and surprise of everyone, Christo and Dora settled in the neighborhood and built their nest on a 7th floor air-conditioner of the Christodora at Avenue B and 9th Street.

Discounting the year 2018, when the situation was abnormal for the hawks, they seem to be on schedule for egg laying any time before the end of March.

In the mean time, we've been able to observe Christo catching food for Amelia, which is one way they bond. Christo's favorite food is rat, but Amelia prefers pigeon, so it's been interesting to watch Christo work hard to obtain his mate's favorite dinner. Although Christo is an expert at catching rats, he's not as skilled at catching pigeons. Amelia, however, excels at catching pigeons off rooftops, and seeing her in action is pretty spectacular.

The other evening, I watched Christo take a dive at some pigeons on a rooftop from his perch atop the cross of St Nicholas of Myra church at Avenue A and 10th Street. He failed his first attempt, but then set his sight on a target within the park.

Locking his gaze on the prey, he took off.

Christo shot down from the cross to the lawn north of the Temperance Fountain and nailed a pigeon on the ground.

After a few seconds, he took off with the pigeon and flew it to a tree on the central lawn.

He called to Amelia to come get her dinner, but she didn't immediately respond.

Christo took the pigeon to several different trees within the park, continuing to call for Amelia, but she didn't answer. After a while, he started to eat the pigeon himself.

Christo on his flag pole throne:

Christo posing in the late afternoon sun:

I still get excited when Christo flies right past me at eye-level.

As the sun went down, Christo hunted for rats from atop one of the street lamps in the park. He usually makes one last dinner run before dark.

Just as I was leaving the park for the night, I saw Amelia land on the cross of St Nicholas out of the corner of my eye. Sure enough, Christo swooped in to mate with her. I was two blocks away when this happened.

Three seconds later:  😄

See more recent hawk photos here.