3 Chicks Spotted in Red-Tailed Hawk Nest

Posted in Wildlife on May 21 2009, by Plant Talk

Parents Believed to Be Fordham U. Pair

Richard Fleisher is a professor of Political Science at Fordham University. He has been keeping watch at the red-tailed hawk nest at The New York Botanical Garden and chronicling the activity of the nestlings. Additional photos of the red-tailed hawks can be seen on his Web site.

For the past four years I have watched and photographed two red-tailed hawks nest, hatch, nurture, and successfully fledge 11 young red-tails at Fordham University. The pair were named “Hawkeye” after Fordham alum Alan Alda’s character in M*A*S*H and “Rose” for Rose Hill, the Bronx campus of the University. Hawkeye is lighter in color than Rose, who has a distinctive band on her right leg. I had grown accustomed to watching this pair each spring as they fortified the nest on Collins Hall in preparation of another breeding cycle. In April the eggs would hatch, and soon young hawks that looked like little cotton balls would be visible through my scope. Very quickly these hatchlings (usually three) would get bigger, and by June they would be seen fledging (leaving the nest).

This spring, however, was different—there were no signs of the adult pair engaging in this practice. For sure, in early winter I would see them perched atop some of their favorite high spots on the campus. But when February became March and there continued to be no activity, I figured something was up. Sure enough, I got word that a pair of red-tails was nesting on the Library building at the Botanical Garden. I gathered my equipment, including my scope, cameras, 500mm lens, and tripod, to investigate the report of this new nest.

Though I cannot be sure, I am fairly confident that the pair of red-tails in the Botanical Garden is the same pair that spent the past four years on the Fordham campus. The similarities between the two nests are quite striking—both were built on a pediment of a frequently used building. In addition, it strikes me as too much of a coincidence that the same year the Fordham nest was abandoned a new nest was built by red-tailed hawks at NYBG. Finally, I got a close-up photo of the female and can see that she has a band on her right leg. (For more on the debate about whether the pair is Hawkeye and Rose, click here.)

As was the case in previous years, the pair produced three increasingly active hatchlings, which are now visible in the nest.

To learn more about the Botanical Garden red-tailed hawk nestlings…

The adults can be seen flying to and from the nest carrying prey to feed their hungry chicks. The youngsters are getting bigger and have not yet fully developed their feathers. Soon, though, their coloration will change and they will be seen flapping their wings in preparation of fledging.

When the eventful day arrives in which they take their maiden voyage, they most likely will fly from the pediment to nearby trees and back to the Library building. Eventually they will not be as dependent on the old nest site. Then the day will come in early summer when they are gone. Hawks, unlike humans, do not allow their youngsters to come back home to live once they are capable of fending for themselves. For the next four to six weeks, however, we will have the opportunity to watch this amazing saga once again play itself out. Enjoy it! I know I will. I’ll be out there with my scope and camera equipment trying to take photos of Hawkeye, Rose, and their offspring in the playing out of nature’s wonderment. Stop by and take a peek.

To see additional birds at the Garden, join Debbie Becker for a free bird walk around the hotspots throughout the grounds every Saturday from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., beginning at the Reflecting Pool in the Leon Levy Visitor Center.

Photos by Richard Fleisher