Pale Male and Lola- 4/21/2008

5:36:59 PM Lola has arrived back on the nest after more than an hour. Thirty minutes before Pale Male had disappeared into the bowl.

Previous to his sinking out of sight, Pale Male had spent 24 minutes moving twigs and doing things in the nest in which only his back or tail were visible. Then he finally settled down and now as usual Lola is waiting for him to vacate the bowl.

5:37:12 Lola sees something and focuses.

She follows it down with her eyes.

5:37:14PM Then begins what looks to be a very pleasurable preen.

Then she checks whatever it is again.

5:37:35PM Pale Male begins to rise from the bowl. Lola watches him.

He then does a semi-wings spread...

...and hops out of the bowl. Those sides are getting higher. He is almost always invisible in the bowl unless he is standing.

5:37:47PM Lola watches Pale Male as he prepares to leave.

She then watches his fly away until she knows where he is or is going.

4:38:06PM Did Lola indulge in another bath during her rather long break?

She preens her chest. Her breast could be damp. Look.

5:36PM Lola begins to enter the nest bowl.

She continues.

For 6 minutes...

... Lola does...

Whatever she does when only her back is visible. She is not sitting high; she is doing something.

5:44PM Lola sinks out of sight. Neither Lola or Pale Male were sitting high today. Nor did I see any behavior that made me believe today that anything new had happened in the last 24 hours. In fact, unfortunately, all seemed very very ordinary while I observed.

And for the color starved, the purple tulips outside the ladies room at The Boathouse in Central Park.

Donegal Browne