The NYU HawkCam Is Back...As Are The Hawks

Last spring, a daytime web-cast drama originating from high on a ledge of NYU's Bobst Library about a family of red tail hawks caught the interest of thousands of people around the world.  Well, I am happy to report that HawkCam has been renewed for a new season and started broadcasting this week live on the web, 24 hours a day.

The second season has some new cast members too as Violet, the female hawk from last spring, died over the summer after a leg infection.  The newest hawk in the next has been named Rosie (on the right) by readers of the NY Times CityRoom Blog, which has been chronicling all the action in the nest.  And there are two eggs as well so a new baby hawk could be arriving come springtime!  They've also upgraded and repositioned the camera so that now you also get a lovely, live view of Washington Square Park and the memorial arch too.

HAWK NEWS: The NYU Baby Red Tail Hawk Has A Name

So the big news this week with the baby red tail hawk nesting on a ledge above Washington Square Park is that he has a name now....Pip.   There was a naming contest online and Pip won, with York coming in a close second.  The reference is to Dickens' "Great Expectations" as everyone was surprised when Pip busted out of his shell a week after the experts said he was not going to hatch.  Now Pip is thriving and getting bigger by the day.

If you need a daily hit of adorable, forget those cat videos on YouTube.  You can check out the latest star of Internet cuteness live on his own streaming webcam page.  You can even chat with other hawk watchers about all the excitement goin on in the nest as this little neighborhood bird gets bigger every day.  I challenge you not to smile when he turns his big black eyes to the camera and stares like the cute eyeas he is.

NYU HAWK UPDATE: Feeding Time & Rescue Mission

Below is an cute video of feeding time for Violet, the red tail hawk that has been nesting on a ledge at NYU library with her new baby hawk.  That's the good news.  The bad news is the swelling on Violet's leg from a wildlife band has gotten increasingly worse in the last week and there is now a plan to try and fix it.

Bird experts from the Bronx Zoo are planning to come in today and, with a baited trap, get Violet into their hands so that they can remove the band and treat her leg which seems to be infected.  Hopefully this will do the trick. But if not, then they will take Violet and her baby up to the Bronx Zoo where the eyeass will be raised in captivity, away from it's mother. Apparently, without the nest she built and instincts that come with it, Violet might not take care of her own kid.  Bizzare but fascinating.  And absolutely adorable too....

BREAKING NEWS: We Have A Baby Hawk In The Village!

After more than 5 weeks of watching, it appeared that the eggs that a Red Tail Hawk was sitting on high above Washington Square Park were duds.  Earlier this week, the eggs reached their so-called "expiration date" and professional hawk-watchers said there would be no baby hawks in this nest on a ledge of NYU's Bobst Library.

Well, lo and behold, this morning everyone got a big birthday surprise as the HawkCam showed a baby hawk in the nest.  The eyeass (which is the technical name for such a creature) had poked through its shell over the last 24 hours. Viewership on the HawkCam has nearly tripled with the news too.

So what's next? The hawks will be feed by their folks over the next few months. And what's on the menu? New York City rats of course! Fortunately, the hawk watchers have coordinated with the NYC parks department and the poison bait for rats left in Washington Square Park will be removed for the time being so that the young hawk can grow up nice and healthy in its deluxe nest in the sky.

Red Tail Hawks Make Their Nest At NYU

There's a new bird in town.  Just a few blocks from my apartment, two red tail hawks have taken up residence on the 12th floor ledge of Bobst Library, just outside the offices of NYU President John Sexon.  Bobby (l) and Violet are pictured here (with Washington Square behind them) and there are more red tails to come with three eggs soon to hatch.  NYU has even set up a Hawk Cam so you watch all hot nesting action in real-time.

Christopher James, the PR rep for the school was even savvy enough to create a Twitter feed for the birds, which he has been semi-secretly writing.  Granted the nesting routine of the domestic red hawks is not nearly as dramatic as another recent celebrity animal feed, that sassy Bronx Zoo snake who took to Twitter and racked up nearly 30,000 followers in his week on the lam.  But it's still fun to check out as we wait patiently for those eggs to hatch....a lovely sign of spring in the heart of Greenwich Village.