WILD NEW YORK--THE MOVIE Plus--Isolde and the Divine Invisible Eyasses, Street Art, and Where Are Charlotte and Pale Male Jr.?

Isolde has been standing on the other side there for quite sometime now.

6:15
Periodically she looks at the eyeasses. I decide it's time to switch positions and see if I can tell what she's looking at.


I picked up all my stuff, trotted across the street and around the corner just a hawk flew off the nest. What? And then when I looked up at this other view---there was a tail. Someone was still up there but I'd lost a good bit of action in those few moments by being on the wrong side of the foliage.

I start back around to my previous position and notice a cat walking up the sidewalk from Morningside Park. Then the shrieking of Mockingbirds registers.

And here comes one diving and screaming. Note the squirrel that was making his way along the top of the fence just got the begesus scared out of him.

But the real focus of Mocker's ire, is Kitty. And Kitty knows it. Kitty only has one foot on the ground at this point as she's started to truly hustle.

But enough of the sideshow, Isolde is now inside the bowl doing something.

7:20:21pm
More looking.

7:31:38pm

7:33:06pm
Scrunching down???

7:33:23pm
Begging?

7:34:22PM
Isolde seems to be feeding from within the bowl, something she ordinarily doesn't do. Very interesting.

7:35:03

7:35:18pm

7:35:35pm
More begging?

7:35:51pm
Another bite.

7:36:24pm

7:37pm

I think Isolde is actually getting used to me to some extent after all these years. She now looks at me without her previous wary expression most of the time.
Now it's more, "Yes, she's likely alright and if she isn't I can take her.

7:38:08pm

7:38:22pm

7:38pm

7:42pm Virtually Sunset and so I head for home.

I get off the subway at 43nd and Eighth, glance over and--What is that?

I go over for a closer look and that turns out to be some fabric street art. It certainly does brighten things up a bit.

I remember one day walking along 42nd Street across from the Port Authority where many tired travelers wait for taxis, buses, their uncle who's picking them up, etc. and during the night someone had come and put little tiny Naugahyde upholstered cushions complete with upholstery studs on top of fire plugs, standpipes, you name it anything that was upright. I saw many many smiles from people that day, one of the points of playful street art, when they saw the little cushions particularly as they watched others attempting to playfully perch on a four inch seat on top of a hydrant top.

But now to a less happy topic, I'd sent an email to Brett Odom major watcher of the 888 7th Ave nest of Pale Male Jr. and Charlotte asking how things were going. Here is his response--

Hey Donna.

Unfortunately I do not have good news. Charlotte and Jr. are definitely not currently using the nest on 888 7th Ave. Perhaps they are waiting a little bit longer, which is doubtful since it is already late April, or perhaps they have an alternate nest at another site of which no one is aware. I have asked around for other nest sightings but have not had any luck.

I still see them flying above the park and sitting on the Essex House sign, but they have not visited the nest on 7th Ave. in several weeks.

At some point one weekend I would like to spend some time at the Park and just see what they do and where they go, but I have not had a free weekend to do that yet. Is Isolde and Norman's nest in the same location as it has always been on the cathedral or have they moved? Wasn't there a year or two where they did not even nest on the cathedral because of all the roof construction?

Brett B. Odom

It is possible that Jr. and Charlotte won’t nest this season but it is also possible that they have a secondary nest somewhere. We know that PM and L often put some twigs on the Beresford and this year Norman and Isolde put some on a fire escape but no one I know of has figured out where Jr. and Charlotte's alternate is.

Yes, Isolde and Norman are back to their nest behind St. Andrew at the Cathedral. Last year as far as anyone could find they did not nest at all. Of course it is possible they used an alternative spot and we never caught them at it. Once they couldn't be found few hawkwatchers were uptown that often so they could have had fledges that we never knew about.

And to the readers, any information about the activities of Charlotte and Junior pass them along and perhaps we can piece something together what they are up to.

Also to the readers within reach of NYC,

WILD NEW YORK, the documentary by South African director Adam Weltz , that features our wonderful rehabbers, Bobby and Cathy Horvath, hawkwatchers James O’Brien, Francois Portmann, and me, is playing, with a panel Q and A, this Wednesday the 28th at 9PM, at the Anthology Film Festival--

Anthology Film Archives, 32 Second Ave., New York, NY 10008,

(212) 505-5110

There will be a number of showings of that film and many others so if that date doesn't fit your schedule check out theirs and perhaps one will.

Donegal Browne