Red-tail at Work

I’m not sure what to make of the collection of twigs amassed by the Cathedral Red-tailed hawks atop Saint Peter’s canopy.

I posed the question on Twitter, and love the response I received from Robert of Morningside Hawks: “If they were predictable, they wouldn’t be wild. And sometimes they do weird stuff because they know you’re watching.”

For now, at least, the hawks seem to be focused on refurbishing the old nest on Saint Andrew’s mossy shoulders.

When I arrived at the nest this morning, it appeared empty. But as I crossed Morningside Drive to enter the park, I looked back toward the Cathedral in time to see a hawk swooping in from the north to disappear from view behind the saint’s head.  Although I could no longer see the bird, I could see twigs moving as the hawk rearranged nesting materials.

Then the hawk hopped onto the old man’s head and looked out over the park and nearby streets.

What a view.

Somehow, the poor saint looked especially sorrowful this morning, and the hawk, well, hawkish.

After a few minutes, the big bird spread its wings and soared off to the southeast.

Explore posts in the same categories: Birds, Hawks, In the City, Morningside Park, NYC Parks, Seasons, Spring, Wildlife/Natural History, Winter

Tags: Cathedral hawks nesting, Cathedral red-tails, Morningside Hawks, NYC hawks, red-tail hawk nest St John the Divine, urban wildlife

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