Milkweed Buds, Another Try at Bat Fly Out, A Tidbit From Stella on Pale Male's Fledgling Bugsy and Last But Not Least...SO YOU THINK YOU WANT A PARROT!

The mature Common Milkweed I transplanted is coming along.  See the coming blossoms center?  Also a couple of interesting insects...

So far so good.  Which is more than I can see for my efforts to catch the small bat colony which resides somewhere on or in my house at fly out.

 Not a bat in sight though I thought I was watching all the time...okay most of the time, as I got an important text, perhaps at the exact moment I should have been watching. 

 This is the area under the eaves that the other bats appeared to be coming from on Little Brown Bat fly out night.  It is in inky darkness at fly out time so I just periodically and blindly took a picture, and later brought up the image in the photo program with hope to have caught something...which I didn't...yet anyway.

And a very nice tidbit from Central Park Hawk Watcher Stella Hamilton.  Bugsy the fledgling of Pale Male and Octavia, who was notorious for eating bugs earlier in his fledglinghood actually brought down a squirrel today on her own!  Squirrels being no easy prey as they have extremely tough, hard to puncture skin and very sharp teeth.  Bugsy as it turns out is quite precocious.

AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST...
SO...YOU THINK YOU WANT A PARROT?

Yes Ladies and Gentleman Quicksilver the African Grey Parrot ran amuck while I napped having inadvertently fallen asleep with the parrot at large in the house.

In the past this hasn't been a problem as Silver didn't, for whatever reason, go into the kitchen on his own.  Well this day he obviously did and when he heard my footsteps approaching from the other side of the house, I heard a little parrot voice saying, "I'm sorry.  I'm sorry."

At the sound, I was filled with dread.  It has to be something really egregious before Silver apologizes before I even appear on the scene.

Note the pile of lime jello on the stove top and a smaller pile of lemon on the counter.  Silver was standing between them apologizing with bits of teabag clinging to his chest.  The dog was snacking on the coffee cake on the floor and Squirrel the Cat was sitting on the counter, left, hoping for Silver to dispense something he'd like very soon.

Therefore think very carefully about your patience level and how much you can take before the lifelong decision of a very smart feathered friend who cannot help but open the cupboard when you're distracted,  chunk things out and chew them.

But as the pet is a parrot, at least he apologized...in English.

Happy Hawking!
Donegal Browne

FLASH!!! Fledging Imminent at Thompkins Square Park!!!

   

Photo by Francois Portmann   http://www.fotoportmann.com/birds

If you've not seen a fledgling come off the nest for the first time,  it is one of the most exciting moments in hawkwatching bar none.

Francois Portmann,  chief watcher and creator of  the above view says that fledging is imminent at Thompkins.  So if I were you I'd be down at Thompkins Square Park participating in the vigil waiting for the big moment. 

Besides the fact that as this is a new nest it is unknown how successful a spot it is for fledglings to get where they need to go, i.e. the park and not the street bristling with traffic.

Another reason to be there.  It has happened that a fledgling came down into city traffic and had to be rescued and placed in a safe green space by a vigilant hawkwatcher.

For those new to the "fledgling pick up", it is the feet you need to go for first as they  are a fledgling's or really any hawk's automatic weapon.  In an emergency, grab the fledglings ankles with one hand (Don't be timid, JUST DO IT.) and use the other hand to hold them close to your body until you get them to safety.  

HAPPY HAWKING!!!

DONEGAL BROWNE 

Evening Feeding by Pale Male (Fourth Post of the Day)

Photos and commentary by Pale Male Irregular Stella Hamilton

6:07PM Here is Pale Male on the ground with a freshly caught rat under his talons . We were standing along the fence on 5th Avenue and 78th street .

Photos and commentary by Stella Hamilton

 Here's the baby eating the rat that Pale Male brought.

This is the fourth post of the day, therefore keep scrolling down. You'll have to go to the next page as well to complete all of today's posts.  

To get to the next page, hit "older posts" at the bottom of this page.

Happy Hawking!
D.B.

FLASH!!! PALE MALE UPDATES AS THEY HAPPEN (These were posted as they came in, if you are beginning scroll down to the end, the actual beginning 7:08PM and read up)

9:03PM EST,

Nearly all the hawkwatchers have gone home.  wending their way on buses, subways, and even cabs for those who are running late for a friday dinner, to apartments all over the city.

Octavia will have finished helping the remaining eyass on the nest with her dinner.  Dozing, the eyass slumps.  Octavia will preen and compose herself for sleep.  But her eyes will open every few minutes in the night and survey her surroundings.  

The eyass may be restless sporadically in  the night, new pin feathers poking her skin.  If so Octavia will preen her until she rests quietly again.  Then back to momentary sleeping and waking.  Only half of Octavia's brain will sleep at a time, the other will be aware and ready.

The Oriole who has been going through the motions of attacking Fledge 2 will have gone to his own rest by now after checking in with his family.

The Central Park Raccoons will be coming out of their sleeping places to peruse any possible eatable goodies that have been left behind.  Perhaps the prize of a forgotten bag of cotton candy still wrapped in plastic which will be laboriously pulled up a tree with the climb to privacy and enjoyed at leisure. 

Pale Male will have chosen a spot to roost where he can see both fledglings in their trees and Octavia and the eyass on the nest.  From the sounds of the fledglings locations he could well pick an old favorite, a tall  London Plane with a branch directly above his head to protect him from Great Horned Owl attack in the night only a stones throw from the Hawk Bench.

 He will not fall immediately asleep. He will carefully preen every feather just so.  He must be ready for anything day or night.

The night breeze will come up.  The moon will shine on the Model Boat Pond as it has for a hundred and more years.  Perhaps  there are one or two watchers who have decided to keep a vigil on the Hawk Bench, though I hear that that is very  rare these days.  In fact the Bench in daytime is often empty with no Rick to mark it's identity.

The lights of Fifth Avenue are there to the East, sifting through the trees, as is the commotion of the cabs and buses on Fifth Avenue.  Close, but far away in the dark of Central Park.  The small night creatures rustle in the flower beds and the little wind sighs in the leaves.

And perhaps the spirits of former watchers meet on the bench for yet another vigil through the night to keep Pale Male's vigil company.  Just perhaps.  So many who have come and gone...drifting into the night forever. 

And still Pale Male remains.  

With a last long look around him, he will settle himself into yet another sleep, protecting his family, ears aware, his eyes close.  Ready to open and he'll fly out yet again at a moments need.

Good night Pale Male.  Sleep well.



SCROLL DOWN FOR PREVIOUS UPDATES OF TODAY

FLASH!!! PALE MALE AND OCTAVIA HAVE A FLEDGE!!!!!! (Pale Male Does It Again!) And Addendum on Franklin Nest teircel/formel ID

Photo Stella Hamilton 

Just in from veteran Hawkwatcher Stella Hamilton!

 We have a fledge!

 No one knows when it happened because the  area where Hawkbench is was closed due to the Puerto Rican Day Parade. A bunch of us hawk watchers quickly stormed the Model Sailboat Pond as soon as the the cops gave us the OK to go right on in after the parade had ended. 

We heard the baby calling but could not find it right away. 

Mom, Octavia, was nearby, so baby must be around. After a few minutes of searching, Lincoln located baby on a railing of a building 2 blocks North of the nest building. 

Pale Male was also hanging around the terraces of the buildings and treetops along 5th Ave.  So, two more babies to go. 

It will be raining the next 2 days , so good luck. 

Stella

 Photo Stella Hamilton

And a vigilant parent is never far away!

Stay tuned!  More as it comes in!

ADDENDUM on the Franklin-  A heads up from Robin of Illinois--wonderful comparison of the ankles of a tiercel vs a formel eyass!  http://sunnydixie.blogspot.com/
HAPPY HAWKING!
Donegal Browne