If you live in New York City, like most people you will rarely expect to see a large bird of prey such as a Red-tailed hawk. But there are dozen or so Red-tailed hawks nesting in New York City. Some of the Red-tailed hawks are residents and can be found throughout the city all year long. Main diet of Red-tailed hawks are pigeons and they are the natural pigeon control in the city. The most famous Red-tailed hawk in the city is Pale male. Pale male who arrived on Central Park in 1991 nests on one of the most luxurious real estates in the city, 927 Fifth Ave at Upper East Side. Every summer number of diehard bird watchers gather around the pool near the 72nd street entrance of the Central Park to get a glimpse of the chicks in the nest made by Pale male. Pale Male has become a legend and books have been written about him and television documentaries has been made about him.The ability survive in the densely populated place like New York City is the greatest survival advantage that Red-tailed hawks has, while most other large birds of prey struggle to co-exist with humans and disappearing from the face of earth.
This is a picture of a Red-tailed Hawk I took at New York Botanical Garden (I wished I had a better zoom in my camera)
Cool Facts about Red-tailed Hawks
• They are commonly known as "Chickenhawks" though it rarely preys on standard sized chickens
• Red-tailed Hawks have been seen hunting as a pair, guarding opposite sides of the same tree to catch tree squirrels.
• The oldest known Red-tailed Hawk was 28 years 10 months old.
More about the Red-tailed Hawks of NYC
http://nycaudubon.org/red-tailed-hawks-in-nyc
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/pale-male/introduction/2422/
http://urbanhawks.blogs.com/
