Why I love Science.

The natural world always holds a deeper mystery. Just when you think you know the deal, something else takes place that radically changes your understanding. The best tool for this discovery is science, based on observation, rather than heresay. As Darwin himself says, "To kill an error is as good a service as, and sometimes even better than, the establishing of a new truth or fact." For this I submit the case of the Morningside Kestrels!
The male still bringing food to the female.


Flying to the scrape after transferring the prey in Morningside Park.


I didnt hear chicks responding to his entry, so its hard to say where they are in the nesting period...but as I watched the female in Morningside, I noticed a dark shape dart towards a tv aerial on Manhattan Ave. As I spun around, I was incredulous to see a female kestrel dive into a hole! Amazed I checked back towards the female in Morningside Park, and she was still there. Incredibly, another male kestrel showed up and then promptly flew into the nest hole too!


At once I accepted the inevitable conclusion, there must be two independent kestrel nests, within 1 block of each other! Totally unprecedented. To seal the deal, I waited out the cavity in the late evening, to find the female heading home!



Here are the approximate locations of the scrapes.

Good luck to both nesters!

Momentary Lapse of Judgement

I've been treated to late evening displays by the 3 Riverside Church juveniles. Here's a compilation of my tweets from yesterday and a final pic.
1. 2 juvy peregrines high above the dwyer!
2. Peregrine over morningside3:13 PM Jul 28th from txt
3. All 3 chasing 3:15 PM Jul 28th from txt
4. 1 just crashed oh no going 2 save3:16 PM Jul 28th from txt

From my vantage, I saw the young falcon tumble 16 stories and crash somewhere behind the trees. Amazingly, with the help of some maintenance workers, we quickly located the stunned bird!

Clearly seen is the injury to the juveniles beak. Just after I took this shot, he vaulted above me and then flew into Morningside Park somewhere. Subsequent efforts to locate the bird by myself and RBS have been unsuccessful.

125th St. Raptors!

As winter progresses, the resident raptors are now displaying more territorial behavior. Courtship displays can be seen high over Morningside, with hawks, peregrines and redtails all sharing the same airspace. On Sunday I witnessed the Cathedral Pair courting on the stiff wind, and then an aborted copulation attempt!



After this attempt, the female flew north, slicing right past me!

Much to my surprise, she continued waay, waay north, where I lost her over Drew Hamilton.

In her wake, a juvy RTH made a move on some pigeons roosting on the Apollo.

Later on the Riverside Peregrine Pair paid me a visit...wheeling high overhead!



Last but not least, this Turkey Vulture, slicing in from the North!

Uptown Raptors

After some time of not being able to find them, I relocated my two "friends" on 135th St. The hawk had just caught a squirrel in the Park and landed on the school to consume it.




As you can see, all sorts of hazards threaten them on a daily basis.

Meanwhile this male kestrel took up a hunting position high up on this radio antenna, just to the east.



Next up...Migrating Raptors!

Kestrel Pix

After a lull in birding activity, things are picking up on all fronts. The second wave of spring migrants will move through the City's Parks in a great wave. Also, with any luck, there will hatchings at the nesting raptor sites around the City. Even some of the owls in the City will be fledgling! Assessing the action from rooftop level, I witnessed many egrets, cormorants, ducks and gulls transiting from east to west. I also had fleeting glimpses of Norman...who is getting quite good at being elusive. But the most activity I saw was from the kestrels. The male was flitting frorm rooftop to rooftop.




He alit on a cornice and set up an ambush where the sparrows nest in the water spouts. Instead of diving towards the street, he peeled back and flew in to the roof less than 10 yards away. At first I couldnt get a look, but then found him on a drain vent, killing a bumblebee!



After disappearing for a while, I found him on a rooftop across the street!

I watched as he popped the head off the sparrow and discard it.

He flew out waaaay north with it. Later, I found him and the female near the scrape!

Three of a Kind

For the past few weeks, I've had fleeting glimpses of kestrels throughout the Hamilton Heights area. I couldn't tell if any of the birds was either the adults that inhabit the region or recently fledged falcons. This weekend, on 07.07.07, as I was walking up Highbridge Park, I spotted two kestrels perched outside the Morris Jumel Mansion. In the weird light, I got a few good shots off. Here's the diminutive male.

and the larger female.

The pair on a snag.

A bluejay came in for a look.

It wasnt till I got home and looked at the pictures that I realized that these were two recently fledged young. Could it be that the pair had a successful nest this year? I headed out the next day and searched the area. At 155th, high above Edgecomb Ave. I found the youngsters cavorting on the solid breeze.


As they spun and dove on each other over and over I was awestruck at their agility and speed. After diving behind a building, I lost them for several minutes. When I spotted them next, there were three!



They were literally playing a game of tag!

You're it!




One of the males broke away from the group.


He swung a few blocks down St. Nicholas and landed outside the scrape. He then gave me some of the best kestrel shots I've gotten to date!





Thank you Harlem and congratulations on the triplets to the St. Nicholas Pair!