6/4, J. Hood Wright Park

The Washington Heights red-tail hawk nest across from J. Hood Wright Park seems to be running a little late this year. Even as young hawks begin to fledge from other Manhattan nests, the JHW nestlings still have some fuzz on their heads and look several days if not a week or more away from being ready to go.

But at least they are exercising their wing muscles a bit.

Although it was reported two weeks ago that there are again three hawks nestlings in the JHW nest, I was only able to get a look at two. A single photo did suggest at the presence of a third, but if it was there, it stayed down and didn't even budge as its sibs big-footed around the nest.

Although watching the skies and the sidewalk below was on the agenda, there was also a whole lot of preening going on. No surprise given the drizzly weather.

Elsewhere uptown, it looks like the Fairview Ave./Gorman Park nest has failed. Although a mama hawk was seen brooding there a couple times earlier this season, it was apparently empty when I passed by a few weeks ago. Checking on the site again on Sunday, it was indeed hawkless — neither adult nor nestling.

4/22, Uptown Hawk Nests

Saturday afternoon I headed uptown to check on red-tailed hawk nests in the Washington Heights-Fort George Hill area. I hoped to find evidence of a hatch at one, and evidence of anything at two others. My luck was... mixed.

At J. Hood Wright Park, close to the George Washington Bridge, the hawks know what they're doing. This is their sixth season at that location, and since the third they have been reliably one of the earlier sites in Manhattan to see a hatch. It's apparently such a good site that their average nestling count over the prior five seasons is, if I remember correctly, 3.0. Keep in mind that the first season, they only had two babies.

In any event, the JHW nest looked empty when I first arrived, although it was possible the female was nestled toward the back of the nest where she can be hard to spot. I wandered around the park to a spot that is distant but has a good angle and from there saw the female standing on the edge of the nest (photo above).

By the time I walked across the park, she was nestled in the nest, keeping eggs and/or baby hawks dry and warm.

And there she stayed for the next half hour until I moved onward.

Fifteen blocks north, the Fairview Ave./Gorman Park hawk nest is on the back of an apartment building overlooking the valley between Fort George Hill and Fort Tryon Park. It's a hard spot to get a good look at the nest. The best angle is from Overlook Terrace, but that's more than 300 yards away. But with a half decent telephoto lens, I could see someone was in the nest.

Look closer. Mama is at home.

The Fairview Ave. nest was empty when I checked the area back on March 18, so it's possible there has not been a hatch there yet. But it was an early nest two years ago (when it was higher up the fire escape), so who knows.

Anyway, there are some other spots much closer to the Fairview Ave. nest where you can watch for activity, although the angle isn't the best. Like farther up Fairview.

But in a few weeks when there are baby hawks big enough to wander about the fire escape, it will be easier.

I finished the day on the other side of Fort George Hill, checking the area around the old Highbridge Park/Swindler Cove nest. It apparently went unused last year but I had found a possible alternative nest site in the area a few weeks ago. Also, I had seen a hawk in the area a couple times last month. Unfortunately, neither nest site was occupied on Saturday, nor were any hawks to be seen anywhere else nearby.

6/5, J. Hood Wright Park

Sunday afternoon in between rainstorms I checked on the hawk nest overlooking J. Hood Wright Park in Washington Heights, where earlier in the week we learned that there were a very out-of-the-ordinary four baby hawks. A couple reports late in the week indicated that one or two had fledged and at least one had wandered as far afield as the rooftops overlooking Broadway. Instead it look like three have fledged, as I found just a single nestling still at home, alone.

Despite searching the area for some time, I couldn't find the three fledglings. Presumably they were on apartment rooftops, difficult or impossible to see from the street unless they happen to perch on an antenna.

One parent was in the area, first perched at the corner of Broadway and West 175th St., trying to dry off from what looks to have been a drenching.

Fifteen minutes later the parent had crossed to the other side of the new 175th St. pedestrian plaza, perching along Wadsworth Ave. From there it headed east to the Church of the Incarnation.

And then out of sight.

A bonus hawk sighting came later farther north at the corner of Ft. Wsshington Ave. and West 190th St. Presumably this was a parent from the nest across the valley at Fairview Ave. near 190th St. That nest is now empty and the one or more — we never got a final count — nestlings presumably fledged.

5/1, J. Hood Wright Park

On a wet Sunday afternoon, I headed uptown to see if I could figure out how many nestlings were in red-tailed hawk hawk nests. But with the bad weather and bad light, success was mixed.

At the J. Hood Wright Park nest, papa flew up with dinner just after I arrived.

After the drop-off he flew across the street and perched in a tree near the subway entrance.

So how many babies are up there. We already knew there were two, but would the feeding reveal a third?

Unfortunately, despite two baby hawk heads being visible getting fed and watching mama, there was never any clear sign of a third. One never knows, though, as the babies were in regular motion and viewing angles not that great.

And it was a long feeding, going on a half hour before the rain and increasingly poor light convinced me it was time to leave.

The entire time, papa had remained in the tree across the street. In weather this murky, no need to travel around the neighborhood unless there's a real need.

4/9, J. Hood Wright Park

Saturday afternoon I checked on a few of the uptown hawk nesting sites, but only at J. Hood Wright Park did I find hawks at home. Happily, even as I was walking down Fort Washington Ave towards the nest, I found the mama hawk was inside looking back.

Although a switch-off on this nest was reported almost a month ago, it seems there has been no hatch yet. As I watched the nest for close to an hour, the female did not get up to do a feeding. In fact, she only got up once, and that just to shift position and perhaps do a quick rotation of the eggs.

As sunset approached, the male hawk quietly appeared. Taking a break from watching the nest, I turned around to find he was perched in a tree near the center of the park.

He, too, seemed content to stay where he was. He made no move towards the nest, but just remained atop the tree, scanning the skies and occasionally staring hard at the George Washington Bridge, perhaps watching one of the peregrines who nest there.

7/4, Picnicking Hawks

Saturday evening at J. Hood Wright Park in Washington Heights, two of the red-tailed hawk fledglings decided to participate in the Independence Day picnicking happening around the park's central lawn. Lots of people came home from the park with hawk pictures, as the birds got right down with the people.

The first fledgling to be found was perched in a tree near the park's recreation center.

Something to the north catches his attention.

Very much has his attention. It's time to fly.

He flew north one tree, but was barely there before zoom, he and a second fledgling were flying to the other side of the lawn. And I could see movement at the top of a tree over there, too. Maybe an adult up there.

I located one of the fledglings perched low.

But he took off moments later, circled around and landed somewhere higher up and out of sight.

A minute or two later, one of the fledglings dropped down out of the sky and onto the ground.

Looking for something?

Maybe a slightly higher vantage point would help.

Human picnickers began to gather. Who'd ever seen a hawk so close before?

Probably a good thing he doesn't know how to use that knife.

Or the tongs.

Too many people were edging in to take pix with their iPhones, and the fledge took off, heading for the trees over by the basketball courts.

But what about the other fledge, and what about the adult we saw?

There's mama at the very top of a tree.

The other fledge was trying to ease out onto the same clump of foliage as mama. She decided she wasn't having any of that and took off, heading east.

The fledging perched on the leaves for a few moments, and then did a parachute drop.

Pulling out of it just a few feet from the ground and then flying off toward the playground.

Took off again a few moments later and I lost track of him.

But wait, there's going to be more picnic action.

A couple minutes later, one of the fledglings landed on the lawn and started looking around.

What could he be looking for? Perhaps a pigeon that mama had dropped?

Right next to where a family was trying to enjoy their holiday meal.

The fledgling seemed to think it would be okay if he started to eat there, too.

But again, people started to close in to take pictures. Four or five bites and the fledgling began to think dinner might be better enjoyed with some privacy.

And zip, into the air and across the lawn, into the tree where I had first spotted one of the fledglings a half hour earlier.

Not entirely private up there, but certainly better than a moment ago.

Time for some chow.

The hawk fledgling's dinner was a good one, lasting well in excess of 20 minutes.

Nearing the end, he tried to gulp one of the largest remaining pieces.

Well, that wasn't going to work. Might as well spend a little more time on the meal.