There's some concern that this hawk has a broken or cracked beak… hard to say...
Top 3 photos by Bobby Williams
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And Goggla shared these with us… "This hawk was clearing the Avenue A playground of rats and mice today as the children played in the background. I lost track of how many it caught, but it downed a mouse in one gulp."
13 comments:
If that beak is injured, someone who knows this hawk's whereabouts should contact WINORR (Wildlife in Need of Rescue and Rehabilitation) ASAP at 516-293-0587!
@Anon 8:37 - thanks for the info. I've contacted the group.
You're welcome, Goggla! I wasn't logged in when I posted that first comment. You'll either speak with Cathy or Bobby Horvath. They are the best and have assisted me with the Washington Square Park hawks in the past.
Here's the reply I received from The Wild Bird Fund (wildbirdfund.org) at 565 Columbus Ave between 87 & 88 St:
The hawk definitely looks injured with feathers and detritus attached to
the beak. It needs to have the beak debrided so it can heal, but lots of
luck trying to catch this red-tail. There's nothing wrong with his wings.
If someone is able to capture, we'll do out best by the beak. Can you send
this missive on to the folks who documented the hawk's problems?
> Hello,
>
> I saw this article and photos online but do not have a clue whether
> the photos show the hawk's beak to be injured, hopefully someone
> at WBF will be able to discern that.
>
> http://evgrieve.com/2013/11/todays-hawks_24.html
>
> http://thegoglog.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-perils-of-hawk-life.html
Maybe someone from WINORR will be able to capture him.
WINORR has the capability to safely capture Red-tails in the wild. I've personally seen them do it in Washington Square Park.
If they are available and take on this case, they will care for the hawk until it's ready for release. They've been doing this for years.
I am a little surprised by Wild Bird Fund's comment, "lots of luck trying to catch this red-tail". I guess they just rehab birds brought to them and don't capture endangered birds themselves. Did they make suggestions as to who should be called to do so? It's definitely a job for professionals.
Goggla, would you please Grieve posted so we can get the updates?
Not great advice from that place with the "lots of luck" comment. A professional rescuer/rehabber should capture this bird. It isn't a job for someone who doesn't have experience with birds. Both the person and the bird could be injured.
We went out last night with a broom and a paper bag to catch the hawk but didn't have much luck, it was very windy.
Yeah, I found WBF's attitude with their "lots of luck" comment offensive and dismissive. I don't want to open a can of worms here but I've spoken with someone from WBF in the past and the rep was so mean and dismissive so their comment was not surprising.
Update - I heard back from the people at WINORR and they agree something is wrong with the beak, but can't tell how bad it is without catching it. Some attempts will be made, but it would be helpful if anyone/everyone who sees this bird can take pics/video and gather as much information about it as possible. It appears to be healthy, so any observations would be appreciated.
@grump
HAHA!! …too funny.
Yeah, it would be great if somebody could get a good telephoto lens on this guy.
Thanks, Goggla!
In case anyone reading this is planning on helping out; the injured bird is a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk.
An easy way to tell it apart from an adult are its multiple horizontal, brown-colored bars on its tail feathers and yellowish/root beer-colored eyes. And of course, the junk on its beak!
Older/adult birds have the brick red tail feathers and darker brown eyes.
The bottom three hawk photos in this post are of an adult.
@nygrump -
you're going to need a bigger paper bag.
In fairness to WBF, the reply was from someone who was monitoring their email on a Sunday night, replying a little after midnight, probably a volunteer.
Their "mission statement" says The Wild Bird Fund is a state and federally licensed 501(c)(3) that cares for the injured, ill and orphaned wildlife of New York City. Our mission is to provide medical care and rehabilitation to native and passing migrant wildlife so that they can be released back into the wild. We are the only rehabilitation facility for Wildlife in New York City.
I.e., they will "provide medical care and rehabilitation" but someone has to bring the injured bird to them.
When I was there several months ago, I saw a goose walking around their space. I think they get a lot of injured pigeons and orphaned baby pigeons, and according to their "Rescue How To" page, probably a lot of birds who fly into windows and get injured:
http://wildbirdfund.org/index.php/rescue-help
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