A Hunter in the Ramble

There was a lot of hawk action on January 18. Part 6 of Hawky New Year! shows a first-year red-tailed hawk at Bethesda Fountain, then another young hawk hunting a squirrel near the rustic shelter in the Ramble. The hawk was flying around us as we fed the birds, and eventually swooped down right by me as it grabbed the squirrel. It ate half on the ground, then flew to a tree near the Oven and finished off the rest. There was also a Cooper's hawk in a tree over the Oven.

Young red-tailed hawk in the Ramble, Jan. 18, 2017

The alertness of the red-tailed hawk as he ate has been noticed with all the young first-year hawks we've been seeing with their prey. It's one thing to catch the dinner, another thing to eat it without having it stolen by another hawk.

There is some graphic hawk dining in this video.

The first two photographs are of the young hawk at Bethesda Fountain. The next photos are of the young red-tailed hawk who caught the squirrel. The last photo is of the Cooper's hawk above the Oven.

White Bibs and Yellow Eye Shadow

One of the sweetest sounds in Central Park is the chatter of the white-throated sparrows  (Zonotrichia albicollis). These wonderful birds call out to each other with such a joyful sound that I usually stop in my tracks to listen. And they do such a delightful dance when they dig for their bugs and seeds. Who can resist their yellow eye shadow and white bibs?

White-throated sparrow, April 15, 2016, Central Park

The clips in the Filming the Feathers video were shot from 2013 through 2016 in Central Park and other New York parks. The white-throats are some of my favorite customers, and they do enjoy the sunflower and other seeds. The music in the video is by Franz Anton Hoffmeister (Duet for Flute and Violin in G major, performed by John Bell) and Béla Bartók (Romanian Christmas Carols, Sz. 57, for recorders, performed by Papalin).

I have put more photos on the White-Throated Sparrows page. The following photos are from 2013 through 2016.

White-throated sparrow, Central Park, March 4, 2013

Little Gray Birdies!

The tufted timouse (Baeolophus bicolor) was the first bird to come to my hand for seeds, so it has a special place in my heart. These are talkative, very active birds who flutter about on the ground and in the trees. They are delicate little birds, but stand up for themselves!

Tufted titmouse, Central Park, April 2016

The Filming the Feathers video is set to music by Beethoven (Symphonies 6, 1 and 8), condensed and arranged for recorder, performed by Papilan and obtained from MusOpen.org, a royalty-free music source. There is a lot of bathing, primarily because when they are enjoying a bath, they are relatively stationary and I can film them!

The photos cover four years, from 2013 through 2016, and a lot of sunflower seeds!