A Hawk-watching friend and I were standing on 6th Avenue as my friend pointed out a building where they had spotted Sadie perched recently.
All of a sudden I heard a Hawk scream and then we caught sight of Sadie’s new beau Juno leaping off the Jefferson Market Library spire. We had glanced at the spire a couple of minutes beforehand but hadn’t noticed the Hawk sitting there. They can blend in so well!
Juno circled a few times over the avenue then darted northeast:
Here he was circling near the building Sadie was seen on a couple of days earlier:
A better look at the top of that building (there are no Hawks in this picture):
We followed where it looked like Juno had headed. I checked the Con Edison tower but there were no Hawks there. We started to head north to Union Square Park when I spotted both Hawks circling above 11th Street and University Place. The Hawks were being dive-bombed by what looked like a kestrel before they continued flying northward. I wasn’t able to get a good ‘lock’ on the Hawks to get a decent photo of this activity unfortunately.
I started walking back south after a while of searching and no finding. I was just outside the eastern side of Washington Square Park when I saw a Cooper’s Hawk fly from out of the park trees and onto a building across the street.
The Cooper’s Hawk hopscotched to a couple of new building perches before flying south down Broadway.
I returned to Washington Square and spotted Juno sunning atop the One Fifth Avenue apartment building:
The chilly breezes would tuft up his chest feathers:
He began to walk along the building top 10 minutes after I first spotted him up there.
Stopping near the edge to stretch:
Getting cozy again, surveying the areas east and south of the park:
The Hawks can look south over the park (and the nest) perfectly from this vantage point.
A few minutes passed before he dove off, circled around the north side of the building, and came to a landing on the northwest corner perch:
He dove off yet again close to 10 minutes later:
I did not see him again during my outing. He looked as though he was making himself at home on this long-time Washington Square Hawk building. The more time he spends dominating this park increases the odds he and Sadie will re-use her nest for their own brood next spring.
This seems like good news! It will be exciting if they do use Sadie’s nest and we get to see what kind of mate Juno turns out to be.
That’s what I’m waiting on too. Thank you!
The courtship continues and seems to indicate the family Is forming for the relationship to continue into next year and a new brood of chicks ensues.
I haven’t found the thrill in seeing Juno soar proudly over the park…letting go of Bobby takes a little more time.
Juno is an exceptionally light-colored Hawk and I find myself wondering if he’s descended from 5th Avenue’s red-tailed hawk “Pale Male”. I know there’s no way to know without DNA testing but is it not a possibility?
Hi, Craig. I have wondered the same but we can only speculate. I suppose it’s possible considering both Hawks live in the same city (and that if he is one of Pale Male’s sons, he didn’t travel too far after leaving his Central Park birthplace) but the alternative could also be true; that he’s a mysterious stranger Hawk who found his way to Washington Square Park. I do like the mystery of it though.