Morningside Hawks

The red-tailed hawk nestlings at Grant's Tomb are old enough that they are no longer snoozing away between meals, and are big enough that they can relatively easily be seen as they look around to see what's going on below. And now that they're easier to see, there might even be a surprise in store.

On Wednesday I found a spot behind the monument where I could see two of them. One was sitting on his rear end, the talons on his feet poking up above the edge of the nest. The other was lower but still visible.

Soon the one at left stood up, looked around a bit.

And then apparently walked around to the other side of the nest.

Or did it?

Nestling sitting at left. Nestling standing up at right. And is that hint of another right behind the post?

Oh most definitely.

So it turns out that Grant's Tomb nest has three baby hawks this year.

Earlier over at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, I found Madeleine fussing about her in nest.

Whether she was just rotating eggs, or even doing a feeding, I couldn't really tell. But if it was an egg rotation, she was in no hurry to plop back down on them. Of course, it was a very warm day, so no need.

In any event, she spent about ten minutes either preening or looking around.

And then she got back down in the nest.

At the Grant's Tomb red-tailed hawk nest, sightings of the two nestlings remain a bit difficult due to the surrounding foliage. Nevertheless, occasional views can be had, and sometimes they can be caught looking back.

Their mama, Mrs. Grant, is spending more time away from the nest, albeit nearby. She is often found across the street, perching somewhere atop the International House.

The trees around the Grant's Tomb red-tailed hawk nest have leafed out, making it more difficult to watch the nest. Glimpses can be had of the nestlings, but until they get a bit bigger, glimpses may be all there is to see.

On a gloomy Thursday evening, the nestlings weren't to be seen at all, nor was mama in obvious sight. But around on the south side of the tomb, papa had apparently nailed a mouse or small rat. "The General" was eating dinner in one of the trees along the walkway leading to the tomb.

He also seemed a bit nervous, frequently looking around, and especially up and to the east. Perhaps he was concerned one of the Riverside Church falcons might put in an appearance.

Perhaps the meal had not been enough, as he also scanned the surround ground.

After perhaps 30 minutes he moved to another tree closer to the tomb. Scanned the ground there.

Then to a tree closer to the church, and as the light faded, he flew around the tomb to check on the nest.

On the first of May, the story at the two red-tailed hawk nests in Morningside Heights is quite different.

At Grant's Tomb, eggs have hatched and the two nestlings are roughly two weeks old. Old enough that on a nice evening, mama is willing to leave them snoozing on their own in the nest while she perches across the street.

Over at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, however, it appears that the hawks had an early nest failure and have "re-clutched". There the mama has been visible but barely so, her head poking up just a few inches above the nest as she broods a second clutch of eggs.

If things do go well for the cathedral nest on the re-try, it looks to be about another two weeks before we see signs of a hatch. So call it May 15.