The colder weather made for a quiet day on Pale Male and Octavia's nest.  However, there were a large number of migrates, including a Least Bittern (a small heron) and  Red-headed Woodpecker.

Fifth Avenue's parents Pale Male and Octavia have three eyasses this year.  They're big enough that a visit to the "hawk bench" at the model boat pond will ensure a glimpse of the little ones.   I can't wait for the three to grow up and explore Central Park in a month or so.

The Washington Square Eyass (young hawk) is finally old enough to be seen from the park.  It takes a feeding or luck but the youngster is visible if you are patient.  Tonight there was no late night visit from Bobby.

Changes from the last report:

• The 95th and Lexington nest has been abandoned
• The J. Hood Wright Park nest has hatched according to observers
• The Grant's Tomb has at least two eyasses
• The Washington Square nest had an eyass die.  The current pair have had three nests.
  
  • In 2015 the nest produced 2 healthy fledglings
  • In 2016 there were two unhatched eggs and while one eyass fledged suscessfully, it had problems with late feather growth.
  • In 2017, there was one unhatched egg, one eyass that died in the first week and one hopefully healthy eyass.

The decline of the success rate for the Washington Square nest makes one question if there is a problem with the environment around the park.   We might be seeing the effects of low levels of rodenticides or some other agent.

While it has clearly hatched, the nest is very hard to "spy on".  My visit on Thursday continued to confirm feedings but I was unable to see any eyasses.  Hopefully, they'll be big enough to see in a few days.

Thanks to a Tompkins Square Park Birder's great spotting, I got to watch a group of migrating Savannah Sparrows in the park on Thursday evening.  It was a nice surprise in foggy weather.

The surprise of the day was a Barred Owl in the Ramble of Central Park.  It's an unusual bird for the park, especially in the springtime.  It was not welcomed by the Blue Jays, who gave it an amazingly hard time.  At dusk it began to hunt and was fascinated by a tree cavity.  I wonder what it was after?

Central Park had two Indigo Buntings stopping in the park during their migration today.  They were filling up on grass seed just south of Sparrow Rock.

I got to watch two feedings from the female, and also got to see Bobby visit the nest and a few perches in Washington Square this evening.

It looks like the last egg will not be hatching at Washington Square.  While this is better than last year, when two eggs didn't hatch and the only eyass had issues with feather growth, it brings into question the health of the environment around NYU.  While the park has removed rodenticides, they are still used by the University and other building owners around the park.  While many of us has focused on hawk deaths due to secondary rodenticides, fertility problems are also a major problem with these poisons.  I'm afraid we might be seeing this issue at Washington Square Park.

Update 4-26-17: The youngest eyass on the nest died within the last 48 hours.  Cause of death unknown.

Updates:

• The Gorman Park Nest is brooding.  The female has been seen sitting on the nest
• Although the J. Hood Wright Park nest is listed as not having hatched, it most likely has hatched but gone detected just yet.
• It looks unlikely that the 3rd egg at Washington Square Park will hatch.

As always, please email me if you have any updates for this chart.

Although we can't see or count the eyasses at Tompkins Square Park yet, due to feeding behavior by Dora, we know the nest has hatched.  Dora didn't leave the nest while I was there, but Christo was all around the park.  I can't wait to see the eyasses in a week or two.

After watching the Wild Turkey, I took a look at the Fifth Avenue Red-tailed Hawk nest and caught a feeding of the eyasses.  They're still to little to see from the street, but photographs by Lincoln Karim from a nearby building show two eyasses.

Wild Turkeys are not especially rare in the New York area. However, they are infrequent visitors to Central Park.  One was seen up in the Ravine on Thursday and it has been exploring the park.  I caught up with it on Saturday, near the Falconer's Statue.

The two eyasses are still too small to see from Washington Square Park but I did get to watch both parents this evening.  The third egg is expected to hatch on Saturday.

I spend a cloudy evening looking to see if the Tompkins Square Park had hatched.  This early on you look for behavioral queues from the parents, since an eyass will be too small to see at this point.  I didn't see any of the behavior I was hoping for.  This doesn't mean the nest hasn't hatched.  It just means that while I was there, I didn't see any positive signs.

Reports of Manhattan nests hatching are coming in...

Update 4/19: A second egg hatched at Washington Square Park.

The Fifth Avenue nest of Pale Male and Octavia has hatched and feedings began yesterday.  I got to see two feedings and a visit to the nest by Pale Male today.  We'll be able to figure out how many eyasses there are in about a week.

The NYU Nest has hatched.  To watch their live camera, click here. Below are some screenshots of the NYU camera feed.

I'm on vacation visiting family and enjoying the central California coast.  I had a great day watching sea mammals, including Harbor Seals, Elephant Seals and Sea Otters.

It was a nice spring evening in Washington Square Park.  Bobby, the male was on the Education Building flagpole when I arrived.  He went to the nest to give the female a break.  She went to a spanish roof at the southwestern side of the park where she preened for about an hour.  Her brood patch was visible at times when she faced the wind.  While watching her, there was a photogenic Palm Warbler in the park grass.

The female hawk returned to the nest and Bobby then went to the Pless building and appeared to take a chest bath.  After about fifteen minutes he few west and we lost him somewhere around the Judson church.

Tonight I only had quick glimpses of the female.  Once when the male came to visit and later when the male delivered a rodent.  Watching brooding hawks is a bit slow.  I can't wait until the forth week of April when we'll have lots of young hawks to watch!

After visiting the two nests on West End Avenue, and not seeing any sign of activity, I've moved them to the previous activity section.  This leaves us with eight confirmed nest for the year.  I suspect I am missing nests in Harlem and Washington Heights.