The Divine Trio, Part 2

The three little red-tailed hawk fledglings at the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine were very active in the Close on July 16, 18 and 19. The kids have pretty much left the cathedral grounds now, and I haven't seen them for a while. I think they are now hanging out in Morningside Park, and I've always had trouble finding them there. But I did get a lot of nice photos and video in mid-July, and here I offer Part 2 of the Saint John series.

One of the three Saint John the Divine fledglings, July 19, trying to keep cool.

The video is fairly short, but full of some nice shots of the youngsters in trees, on roofs and bouncing a hot butt in a puddle near the guard station in the Close.

This first group of photos shows the kids on July 16. The second photo does not show an alien invasion, but rather a kid with one of the multiple eyelids that hawks have to protect their delicate eyes.

These two shots were taken July 18, when a baby was seen on one of the chimneys on the Cathedral School, while Mama Madeleine sat on a nearby building railing.

This last grouping is from July 19. Unfortunately, I didn't get photos of the fledgling's butt bounce, but you will certainly get a good view in the video.

Two Hawks, One Pigeon

In Part 5 of The Grant's Tomb Fledglings, shot on June 28, you'll get to see the three young red-tailed hawks between 9:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. First, the youngsters explore and cry and try to figure out the hunting thing they are expected to learn. One kid pounces on a napkin and, after carrying it to the top of a park bench, begins to "pluck" it. The napkin didn't stand a chance. Then one youngsters grabs a pigeon brought in by Mrs. Grant (also called Claremont), takes it to a tree, drops it, eats on the ground, then tries to protect the meal when a hungry sibling shows up to eat.

Two kids and one meal, right before grand theft pigeon.

The great hunter with the napkin prey.

You'll find Part 5 below. If you want to get to the sibling rivalry action without watching the beautiful babies pose, preen and hunt napkins, skip to minute 25 or thereabouts. You'll see one youngster with the pigeon meal dine on the ground until a sibling comes in, studies the situation, then grabs what remains.

All photos below show the young hawks on June 28 near Claremont Playground.

Chasing the Divine Hawks

Norman and Madeleine, a red-tailed hawk couple, have a nest above the statue of St. Peter on the Morningside Drive side of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine on 110th Street in Manhattan. This year they had three little kids, and the youngsters have now fledged, fortunately for now into the Close.

A red-tailed hawk fledgling in the Close of the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, July 15

This red-tailed trio are about a month younger than the fledglings in Central Park, Grant's Tomb and Tompkins Square Park. The first video in The Divine St. John Fledglings series follows the kids from June 13 through July 15. You can really see how young they are here.

The grounds of the cathedral, called The Close, are so beautiful. Three peacocks — Phil (the white one), Jim and Harry (the blue ones) — live there and can wander wherever they want. Right now, the peacocks are molting, and feathers can be found all over the place. The three fledglings have been running around on the lawns, chasing squirrels and bugs. You will see that in future videos.

Madeleine (I think) on Gabriel's horn on the top of the cathedral, keeping watch over her fledglings, July 11, 2017

My first trip to the Cathedral of St. John the Divine was probably 15-20 years ago, when I attended a free concert by the New York Philharmonic there. The church has a rich history of the arts, poetry, compassion, love of nature and education (the Cathedral School is a very special place for K-8 students). The church has a Blessing of the Animals event each year.

These photos cover June 13 through July 15.