6/27, Solstice Hawks

Friday hawkwatching began around 6:30 with a trip back into the close at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Good choice, as I immediately found an adult hawk in the midst of dinner above the statue of St. Bartholomew.

Based on the eyes, I'd say it is papa Norman.

He finished up a couple minutes later and dropped the remainder of the meal over the edge. A second later I heard it go bang! on the aluminum catwalk on the chapel roof below. He wiped his beak.

And looked around for a minute or two. Actually, even while eating he had occasionally looked to the northeast, around the corner of the cathedral. Make a note of that.

Then he turned around.

And flew about 250 feet west, where he perched on the eastmost buttress of the nave.

Birds in the garden below immediately started twittering about the intruder, and two blue jays quickly flew up to greet him.

They tried some double-team dive-bombing...

But Norman was staying put.

Hmm, now why is that? Is there some particular reason Norman should be hanging around back here and taking abuse?

Silly me. I didn't think to ask that question. Instead, I exited the close and walked around to Morningside Drive to see if any of the other hawkwatchers were around. I found Lincoln and Susan keeping an eye on a fledgling perched on the scaffolding above St. Savior Chapel. This would explain why Norman was looking this way.

Apparently both parents had been there about 20-30 minutes earlier, when a food delivery was made.

A few minutes later, Lincoln spotted the other fledgling, perched atop the chimney on the south side of the transept.

D'oh! Norman flew right by that spot while I was watching, and his perch on the nave is less than 100 feet away.

Lincoln and I hied our way back around to the close. Sunset light was beginning to come on.

Unfortunately, the cathedral is now paying more attention to shooing visitors out the close at closing time, so the only half decent spot where we could watch the fledgling was out on the sidewalk along Amsterdam Ave.

After 20 minutes of that, I went back to Morningside Drive to check on the other fledgling. Still there. It did some hawk yoga.

And stayed put.

Back to Amsterdam. Norman still in the same spot. Can't quite see the fledgling.

Time to leave, but first take some pix of the West Front of the cathedral. Turns out it's less than 10 minutes to the moment of summer solstice.

And from down 112th St.