Birders Watch Peregrine Falcon at Empire State Building Watching Migrants

Dr. Robert "Birding Bob" DeCandido leads birding tours around New York City. Usually he takes people to see owls in Central Park, which he helped reintroduce. This week he lead a tour of the Empire State Building at night to see birds migrating by--and the peregrine falcons who want to eat them. Here's his report to his followers this week. Not from this trip, but here's a picture of a peregrine seen from the Empire State Building.
Photo here courtesy of Mike Zienowicz
Hello All,

Sunday Evening, 30 August (Night Migration at the Empire State Building) - as I stood outside the Empire State Building (ESB) at 6:25pm, I cursed the weatherman, the wind direction and life in general. The forecast was for westerly winds by 7pm or so, but the few scattered clouds above us sure looked like they were coming up from the southwest. Such winds would insure we would see no migrants. As the hopeful gathered, I offered the option of just canning the trip up to the top - we could use the tickets any time in the next two years. However, there were no takers - people had psyched themselves into going up there, and many had not made a trip in several years (decades). One of us (a native New Yorker) had never been up there yet...

So up we went - along the way, I met Security Guards who remembered me ("hey birdman") and we exchanged smiles and hugs - they telling me excitedly of Peregrine Falcon encounters they had seen "up there" and nights with lots and lots of birds. I was still miserable - I was leading all these hopeful people to a night of nothingness. When we arrived on the 86th floor, the first thing I noticed was the wind - it had switched to more westerly and would actually become northwest by 9pm or so. Everyone noticed how windy it was - about 15-20mph, and the immediate cold. It is really very different at 1080 feet above street level in Manhattan - always be prepared for the cold.

While we were all dealing with the wind, and the abundance of tourists all trying to snap sunset photos, we collectively gasped as an adult Peregrine Falcon flew right past the metal fence - no more than 20 feet from us - the Peregrine was huge. It reminded me of watching the Sharks in the Brooklyn Aquarium that cruise right past the glass where I always press my nose. Anyway, it was the first of a few Peregrine passes that night, and though we did not see any hunting activity, it helped make the wind bearable, and gave a sense of hope that something else might happen tonight.

It sure did - at about 8:15pm, with a little light still remaining in the western sky, a lone bird migrant flapped madly past us. By 8:35pm (Nautical Twilight), the migration began just as I had hoped. First slowly, a single migrant here and there, and then after 9pm, "loose associations" of up to eight migrants at a time were flapping madly past the building, trying to head south while not allowing strange air currents near the building to carry them where they did not want to go. (My guess is that about 500 or so migrants would have been tallied for the night if I had my clicker and remained until midnight.) We tried identifying some of the migrants - best we could do was to conclude they were warblers. However, Ben Goloff did find an orange bird with a black head - yes indeed an adult male Baltimore Oriole.

By 9:45pm, with howling winds and dropping temps - we had had enough. We were all looking rather windblown, parched and shivering with goose bumps...but altogether a happier team I cannot picture. People came to see migration and they saw it - little birds struggling to head south just a few feet away in Manhattan - how amazing is that? They learned to distinguish between the numerous moths and the few bats that flew like falcons through the aerial plankton. Most of all, migration became a real experience to them - not something to read about in books...but to enjoy. No birds collided with the building tonight; rather people will remember the fun they had, and what they learned. There are ways to study the environment in NYC that cannot be done elsewhere - just like the soft flight calls ("tseet-tseet-tseet") that can be heard at 1080 feet - but you must be ready and willing to hear!


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Good! Here are the bird walks for this week ($5):

1. Friday, September 4th: $5. Central Park - Meet at THE DOCK on TURTLE POND at 9am.

x. Saturday, September 5th: No BIRD WALK
3. Sunday, September 6th: 9:00 am - Central Park - Meet at the usual location: the Dock on Turtle Pond at 9 am. $5.

4. Empire State Building Trip for Night Migrants - stay tuned for another trip there - possibly. We need a few days of rain followed by a night with northwest winds. Looking at the forecast for the coming days, we are not going to see that weather pattern. So perhaps next week = Sept. 9-13, but we cannot promise or say anything right now - weather forecasts are not accurate that far out. To get a sense of what you missed, see the summary of the Sunday night, August 30th trip to the 86th floor. Amazing really.
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For the next few weeks, until the tree removal work is completed at the north end of Central Park, we will meet at the Dock on Turtle Pond. "It looks and sounds like a logging operation at the north end," someone said recently.

As of 13 September 2009, we will be raising our Sunday morning bird walk fees to $10 per adult per walk ($5 for kids) for the months of March through December. We wish we did not have to do so, and we apologize. We have not raised the rate on our walks since we began doing them in March 2002. (From 1994 through February 2002, our walks were free.) We are amenable to other arrangements so see/talk to us if the new rate is a problem. Weekday walks will remain the same = $5.
Remember, the funds you contribute support our NYC Research including the American Kestrel Nest Survey on Manhattan Island, the flora of NYC project as well as foreign research including raptor migration studies in Thailand - a site of global significance. Published papers and popular articles are available on most of these topics. (The kestrel research is so new that we are in the process of collecting data to write up for publication.)

Birding at the Empire State Building

Dr. Robert "Birding Bob" DeCandido brings us updates on birding in New York City.

EMPIRE STATE BUILDING - mark you calenders now. Our first (of two) visits to the Observation Deck (25 Aug. to 15 Sept.) to see night migrants will be on an evening with northwest winds either the week of 25-30 August; or the following week.
We need a night with northwest winds otherwise very few migrants will pass by - so that is why you must be flexible and ready to go with about 24-48 hrs notice via email. I will send out a notice - so send me yours if you want more info! If you were on our ESB list last year, no need to update - you have been carried over to 2009.

Bob is returning to Thailand to do more ground-breaking research on raptors and other birds in migration there with the Malaysian Nature Society. Meanwhile, two short films were made about Bob and his migration studies in the Far East. Now remember, this is primitive stuff, and bob had to dress in costume (in the first film he appears somewhat Chinese...):
After a long day at the office, one does develop neck problems looking up at raptor migrants:

Good! Here are the bird walks for this week ($5):

1. Friday, Aug. 21, 9am: $5. Central Park - Meet at Conservatory Garden (105th St. & 5th Ave.)

2. Sunday, Aug. 23,: 9:00 am - Central Park - Meet at the Dock on Turtle Pond

4. Monday evening, August 24th: FREEEEEE. Owls and Bats of Pelham Bay Park (Bartow Pell mansion) - meet at 7:00pm. (If you are coming up from Manhattan by train or Express Bus ($5.50), we might be able to pick you up at the last stop of the #6 Lexington Avenue line = the Pelham Bay stop.) For those who are driving, through the kindness and generosity of Ellen Bruzelius (Director of Bartow-Pell) and Valerie Albanese (Education Director at Bartow-Pell), we have arranged for the Mansion parking lot to remain open for a few hours - so we can do another night census of owls. Last time out (early August) we called in a pair of Great Horned Owls...do let me or Jack Rothman (JacRoth1@gmail.com) know if you will be attending and driving - or might need a lift.


Here is what we saw last week (selected highlights)

Owl and Bat Walks (three walks) Summary - all Central Park - the good news is that we found Eastern Screech-owls on all three walks at the north end beginning at dusk. The even better news is that just before dusk (light still good) on Sunday evening, 16 August, eleven of us watched a screech-owl with downy ear tufts and juvenile plumage on its upper breast being swooped at and harassed by many Robins. So we now know that at least one (and likely all five) of the owls released in July by Bobby and Cathy Horvath are still alive. On the three forays into the north woods (on the paved path along the Loch), we saw the pair of ESOs on each occasion for about 10 minutes each time - before they became bored with us and flew off to look for dinner. On two of the walks, we tracked the owls to the area of the Wildflower Meadow and listened to them calling to each other and the iPod recording of their calls. As an added bonus, every walk featured large Red Bats swooping in and around our heads (some of us had to duck) - this was much fun. We'll likely do one more owl walk before 15 September, and then certainly in December-January. If you have never seen screech-owls night in Central Park, it really is a magical experience.

Owl Lands on Central Park Birders

Notes from Robert DeCandido (PhD), who gives tours in Central Park as Birding Bob.

We have again added two Eastern Screech-owl walks in Central Park this week. Both walks will meet at the North End, since we had very good luck there with owls and bats. In fact, in one unbelievable moment, the most amazing thing, ever (ever) happened on a Bob owl walk:

I couldn't believe my eyes. I was playing the owl tape via the Ipod for a few people when an owl swooped in and landed on Tom Walsh's hand. His son Jack was finally impressed - and I am finally absolved of running the most boring bird (and owl) walks of all time!

Further details about the owls we saw last week (including Great Horned Owls) are provided below. We also include a New York Times article from June 1934 about a "savage" screech-owl that was attacking people in Douglaston, Queens - and an excerpt from Sam Yeaton about screech-owls in Queens covering the 1919-1945 time frame.

Bird Walk Info
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Bird walks for this week ($5):

1. Thursday 7:30, Aug. 13: Owls and Bats of Central Park (The North Woods) - meet at 5th Ave and 106th street
2. Friday, Aug. 14: Conservatory Garden (105th street and 5th Ave.) at 9am.
3. Sunday, Aug. 16: 9:00 am - Turtle Pond Dock.
4. Sunday 7:30 pm, Aug. 16 $5. Owls and Bats of Central Park (The North Woods)

In the last week of August, we will add some trips to the Empire State Building at night. Why? We just received this report from Sandra Critelli: (night of August 11th) - Hi Bob! I wanted to tell you that last night I went to the Empire SB to take my friend from Italy and it was a good night for birds, at least the little time I was there. I counted 29 birds flying mostly low, a little higher than the deck, small to medium (robin) sized birds. All between 8.30pm and 9.25pm when I had to leave unfortunately (I was enjoying the birds). And at 8.50 I saw a flock of approximately 25 little birds flying south and at eye level. And numerous moths low and high. And too many Italian tourists out there!!! Goodnight Sandra
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Here is what we saw last week (selected highlights) with some anecdotal notes and observations. Not all species we saw are reported here - we list the best:

Owl and Bat Walks (three walks) Summary - the burning question of the week was, "Where is David Mills?" David, who is back in England with his lovely wife Geraldine, took control of the bat portion of our walks last year with the aplomb of a general. In a recent email, he wrote, "Education, education! Far more people die of bee stings or dog rabies (or get struck by lightening) in the US every year then get bat rabies, so people should not worry too much. More people get dog rabies in a year than they do in 10 years with bats but do people go "all protective" and scared when seeing dogs in Central Park?
In comparison with most people's views about bats, they should!! Bats do not make nests, or enlarge holes, or chew wires etc in houses as they just hang up etc in caves, trees, bridges & houses. Do let me know if you have any questions on bats or pass my email (see above) to anyone with a question to answer that you can't. And tell them to raise a glass to bats when they enjoy a margarita as "no bats - no tequila" (only bats pollinate the Blue Agave plant)."
OK we had great luck with Red Bats on both walks in Central Park - the north woods were filled with them hunting along the paved path and making us duck as they swooped in and about our heads. As for owls - in the north woods we brought in two Eastern Screech-owls (email me if you want info about their history in Central Park and NYC), but had no luck with owls on the Ramble night walk. (So this week we are only doing North End owl/bat walks.) And in the Bronx (Pelham Bay Park) at the Bartow-Pell Mansion after a NYC owl slide talk, we went outside and called in not one, but two! Great Horned Owls. Bob was even impressed.


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Queens Vigilantes Hunt Savage Bird(New York Times 18 June 1934; Page 19)

Patrol Douglaston with Rakes and Clubs for Creature that Attacked Passerby

Woman's Face is Gashed

Five Other Victims Reported - Dr. Blair Suspects Screech-owl is 'Protecting' Nest

A vigilante committee formed to hunt down a savage night bird that had attacked at least five persons along 241st Street Douglaston [Queens], within the last five nights [June 1934], patrolled the vicinity for at least five hours last night without catching a glimpse of the marauder.

Just before the vigilantes turned out, the mysterious bird - which is believed to be a screech-owl - chalked up his sixth victim. He was Charles Taylor, a student at New York University. Taylor reported that the bird struck him while he was crossing the lawn to his home. He ducked and the bird skimmed past his head.

The bird's other victims, all neighbors on 241st street in the Douglaston Park sector, were Arthur L. Stemler of Bancamerica Blair; Russell cardigan, a stock broker; Mrs. Earl R. Evans, 23 year-old housewife; Peggy Noone, 13 year-old daughter of John B. Noone, assistant treasurer of Standard Brands; and William MacDonald.

The Vigilantes Set Out
The vigilantes, about twenty strong, assembled at Mr. Cardigan's home before nightfall. They were armed with lawn rakes, rug beaters, tennis racquets, an assortment of clubs, and even one bayonet and one rusty machete, souvenir of the Cuban insurrection. Henry M. Ferguson, a bank engineer, wore a Prussian helmet. Earl Trangmar, director of marketing research for Metropolitan Life, had another steel hat and carried the machete.

Up and down the street they marched, using unarmed decoys to lead the way, while the rake or strong-armed men carried up the rear. Joseph Spiro, owner of Douglaston's taxi fleet, hooted at intervals. Once, his imitation was so realistic that a vigilante swatted him with a tennis racquet.

Mosquitos came and went, leaving their mark on the vigilantes. A group of youngsters strolled by chanting, "Who's afraid of the big bad bird?" Wives hooted from suburban doorways. Patrolman George Ludwig was summoned by a grouchy neighbor to drive the rowdies away. And there wasn't a chip out of the man-eating bird, not a single hoot, even of derision.

Finally the vigilantes broke up. Their wives and unsympathetic friends saw that they got their bird - but not the one they were seeking. Their initial defeat did not, however, change their stories of the savagery of the feathered attacker.

All six attacks were on Snell Boulevard and Rushmore Avenue. The heavy foliage of the Maple trees on both sides of the street hides the marauder by day, and at night serves as a leafy ambuscade, whence at any moment, a winged fury with blazing eyes and nerve-shattering screech may drop upon an unprotected head.

Mr. Stemler was the first to have an encounter with the "Douglaston Devil." The next victim was Mr. Cardigan. When he told his story the next day to commuters, they joked about it so mercilessly that he determined to capture the bird. He is the organizer of the vigilantes.

Mrs. Evans was attacked shortly before midnight, Saturday. She and her brother, Mr. Tyrell, had gone for a walk. Hardly had they left their home at 46-54 241st Street, when the bird flew down. They beat it of but it returned to the attack. It flew at them five times and then disappeared.

What the Bird is Like
"I could not see the bird clearly at all," Mrs. Evans said. "It seemed dark and had a wingspan of about sixteen inches. It kept flapping its wings in my face and shrieking and trying to get at my eyes."

Other persons in the neighborhood could add little to that description except that the bird seemed soft and furry.

Dr. W. Reid Blair, curator of the Bronx Zoo, said he believed the nightbird would prove to be a screech-owl with a nest in the vicinity.
============================"The common nester in our streets and backyards was the [eastern] screech-owl. In 1919, people in Flushing [Queens] were familiar with owls (Barn, Long-eared, and Screech), and no one disturbed the screech-owls. For example, there was one in a hole in a maple about twelve feet above the ground on the corner of Sanford Avenue and Kissena Boulevard in front of St. Joseph’s Home, and a sign nailed to the tree called it to the attention of all passersby and said, “Please do not disturb this owl.” Squirrels on the other hand were rare. A friend of mine, seeing a squirrel in his neighborhood, made a house and nailed it to a tree in his backyard. Immediately, he got a screech-owl that lived there for many years. A screech-owl also lays four eggs in a well-protected hollow tree and usually fledges all four, much less subject to predation than baby Robins.... However in 1919, screech-owls, while perhaps not abundant, were actually plentiful. And this was for many years. I remember one Christmas Count after World War II when Frank and Norton Smithe counted 13 screech-owls in Douglaston alone. There were many more red-morph than gray-morph owls, but both were present. I have a photo I took in 1924 of Harrison Skeuse holding a gray-morph screech-owl, but both were present. These were taken out of two holes in two adjacent apple trees at the south end of the gully at Oakland Lake." Sam Yeaton (1988). Early Northeastern Queens. Reprinted from the Queens County Bird Club publication “News & Notes” for the years 1990–91.
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Biologist Leads Bat and Owl Tours in Central Park

Biologist Robert DeCandido, PhD, leads fun tours of wildlife in Central Park (along with Deb Allen). He's let us publish his notes from the week and from NYC birding history.

We have added two Eastern Screech-owl walks in Central Park this week - details are below. And for those of you in the Bronx on Wednesday evening, 5 August, Bob will be doing a slide-talk on the 11 owl species that have been found in NYC (including the 6 species have bred here; overall 12 owl species occur in New York State) - at the Bartow-Pell Mansion in the Bronx (Pelham Bay Park) at 7:30pm. Following the talk there will be an owl walk on the grounds...all of this for $5 adults and $3 for kids. More details:

This week the Bird Walk announcements takes a summer foray to the cooler parts of our area - coastal Queens and Brooklyn to the far far east end of the Long Island Sound.

We feature historical notes about nesting Prairie Horned Larks (Queens); breeding Skylarks and September migrant Turkey Vultures (Brooklyn); and a wonderful tale of the Man-O'-War Bird on Gardiner's Island (Suffolk County). These were made between 1857-1886.

Our feature (summer) bird photos this week also come from a cooler place: the south shore of Nassau County - next to the ocean: Black skimmer Common tern Pair of black skimmers
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Good! Here are the bird walks for this week ($5):

1. Thursday evening, August 6th: $5. Owls and Bats of Central Park (Ramble) - meet at The Boathouse at 7:45pm. (The Boathouse is approximately 73rd street and the East Drive, along the lake in Central Park - if you need better directions, just email me.)

2. Friday, August 7th: $5. Central Park - Meet at Conservatory Garden (105th street and 5th Ave.) at 9am.

x. Saturday, August 8th: No BIRD WALK
3. Sunday, August 9th: 9:00 am - Central Park - Meet at the usual location: the Dock on Turtle Pond at 9 am. $5.

4. Monday evening, August 10th: $5. Owls and Bats of Central Park (The North Woods) - meet at 5th Ave and 106th street at 7:45pm. (The meeting location is one block north of Conservatory Gardens - if you need better directions, just email me.)

Detailed Directions
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Here is what we saw last week (selected highlights) with some anecdotal notes and observations. Not all species we saw are reported here - we list the best:

Friday, July 31st (North End – Central Park) – thanks to Art and Emily Driscoll, the 2-3 Northern Waterthrushes did not escape detection today despite the early rains. The deluge seems to have inspired a number of electric red Crayfish to take a walk along the paths of the Harlem Meer...These "crawdads" would be an epicurean delight in at least one southern city - here, we just watch and photograph them.

Sunday, August 2nd (Central Park, Ramble area) – The heavens work in strange ways. It rained today from about 8:30am until 9:30am - long enough to keep most everyone at home. However, there were some intrepid bird watchers about (including Art, David and Lou; though we did hear, but not see Sandra along with Tom and Jack), and we did find the first Black-and-white Warblers of the autumn migration (both a male and a female). And we also likely found an Eastern Screech-owl hiding location since several Blue Jays were quite upset - unfortunately the leaves of the tree above us were so thick we had no way of seeing into the green mansion. Other highlights today included a Green Heron...and the rain.
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Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) -- Since making my previous record [Auk, 1886, Vol. III, p. 439] on this species I have secured several others through the kindness of Mr. Alfred Marshall, an Associate Member of the Union. The records were all made at the extreme southwestern portion of the Island, Mr. Marshall residing in Flatbush, Kings Co. The following is a copy of his notes: "September 5, 1877, Mr. Johnston says, 'The flagman on the Manhattan Beach R. R., at the Parkville crossing, saw a large bird flying about six feet from the ground, and as it flew by succeeded in stunning it with a stone. He afterward saw it and found it to be a Turkey Vulture in splendid condition.' June 9, 1885, Mr. Johnston also saw two flying over his residence at Parkville, and again on August 26th, of the same year, he saw another. July 9, 1886, he saw still another, being pursued by a Crow. The Vulture mounted to a great height, the Crow following. In May, 1885, I saw one, and May 16th, the following year, I saw another. It was sitting on the top of a dead tree near Ocean Avenue, Greenfield, Kings Co. Two or three wagons drove by while I was watching the bird, but it did not fly, so I crept under the tree to get a good view of it. After watching it for ten minutes, I threw a stone to start it, but it did not fly until I hit the limb it was sitting on; then it flew to another tree about fifty yards off and commenced cleaning its feathers. It was about 5 a.m. when I saw the bird first. I think it had been eating and had gorged itself. These are all the notes I can collect, and I believe they cover the visits of this Vulture in our locality for the past decade." [Ed. note: Turkey Vultures have recently bred in New York City.]

Skylark (Alauda arvensis). -- Late in June, 1857, I received a request from Dr, C. Hart Merriam to investigate a statement made in a New York paper, that "Skylarks are abundant on Long Island, at Flatbush and from that place down, easterly through a stretch of land extending to Flatlands, and thence around and about the town of Flatlands." I referred the request to Mr. Alfred Marshall, who resides at Flatbush and is well acquainted with the locality. Within a few days (July 2) he wrote that he had secured two birds which he supposed were Skylarks. They were forwarded to Dr. Merriam who pronounced them "unquestionably the true European Skylark (Alauda arvensis)." Subsequently, Mr. Marshall informed me that he found the Skylarks in the long-grass fields, and that they were quite plenty. Those secured were young birds. On the 12th of July he saw a great many, all adults, and singing. He also saw one carrying food in its mouth, and supposing it had young, he noted where it dropped into a piece of timothy grass. He was unable to find the nest then, but later, on the 14th, he was more successful, as he found it with five half-grown young. The nest was composed of grass and was placed in a depression in the ground, about two and one-half inches deep, and was hidden under a tuft of grass. The Skylarks remained until September 15th, on which date Mr. Marshall saw the last one. [Ed. note: Skylarks bred in Brooklyn until about 1913 - more than 50 years!]

Prairie Horned Lark (Otocoris alpestris praticola). -- Mr. John Hendrickson, of Long Island City, Queens Co., has the honor of having secured the first specimen of this variety of the Horned Lark on Long Island. July 31st, 1886, he shot one near his home. His brother, Mr. W. F. Hendrickson, when writing to me about it, asked if it was not early in the season for a Shore Lark to be found, and also stated that the specimen was very small. Subsequently he sent it to me, but as I had no others to compare it with, I forwarded it to Dr. A. K. Fisher, at Washington, for comparison and identification. He replied to my inquiry as follows: "The specimen is Otocoris alpestris praticola. To make doubly sure, I had Mr. Ridgway examine it and he said there was no question but that it was praticola. I should not be surprised, if in a few years the bird would be a common breeder on Long Island." September 14, 1887, the Messrs. Hendrickson sent to me in the flesh a Horned Lark which, from its immaturity, had evidently been bred on the Island, and consequently must be praticola.

Man-o'-War Bird (Fregata aquila). -- The claim of this bird to be included in the fauna of Long Island has heretofore rested on the specimen captured by Capt. Brooks, in 1859, on Faulkner's Island, Long Island Sound. After an interval of twenty-seven years (1886) another straggler from the tropics furnishes an additional record of extra-limital occurrence. In August, 1886, Messrs. Lucas and Brick wrote to me that they had just mounted a specimen of the Frigate Pelican for Mrs. John Lyon Gardiner, which had been shot on Gardiner's Island. Subsequently I ascertained, on inquiry, that the bird was shot August 4, 1886, by Mr. Josiah P. Miller, the keeper of the lighthouse. His account of the capture of the specimen is as follows: "The Man-o'-War Bird which I shot a while ago, was, when I first discovered it, sitting on a piece of old wreck, about fifty rods distant from the lighthouse. I tried to get a shot at it, but it saw me before I was near enough, and flew off up the beach out of sight. It came back in about an hour and settled in the same place as before. This time I went on the opposite side of the beach and concealed myself in the grass. My daughter went toward the bird, when it flew directly over me, giving a splendid shot. It was alone, and is the only one of the kind that I ever saw in this part of the world. I have kept this light for twenty years."

From: BIRD NOTES FROM LONG ISLAND, N.Y. by WILLIAM DUTCHER. (Read before the Linnaean Society of New York, 8 March 1888. [Ed. Note: The Great Snow Blizzard of New York City began three days after the reading of this paper.]

Central Park Welcomes Five New Screech Owls

A decade ago when biologist Robert DeCandido, PhD wanted to reintroduced Eastern Screech Owls to Central Park, birders argued over whether they would face a grim death or be so successful they'd devour all the songbirds. Fast forward 11 years and now the tiny owls have quietly established a population up in the North Woods. So that when wildlife rehabber (and fireman) Bobby Horvath released five screech owls Saturday, everyone had come around to welcoming the three gray juveniles and two reds (one adult and one juvenile).

Local bloggers like Gothamist and fantastic wildlife photographer Bruce Yolton's Urban Hawks were just thrilled.

(Photo of Dr. Robert "Birding Bob" DeCandido and a the adult red owl courtesy of bird photographer Deborah Allen)

DeCandido, better known as Birding Bob, says he saw the two youngest owls hanging out together on Sunday. None of the birds were related and they were of different ages, but he would still expect to see some sticking together, at least for a while. Yolton says that the owls at least won't face the threat of great-horned owls that live on Long Island. DeCandido points out that there aren't too many competitors of the same species in the park--and that now the army of wildlife photographers will be able to track them.

DeCandido leads tours in the park so New Yorkers can get a glimpse of the park's owl residents. (I've gone on a few and they're great--even when you don't get to see the owls.)

Still, he says, most aren't going to make it. People always underestimate how few animals surivive in the wild. The mortality rate for Eastern Screech Owls raised by their parents is 80%. And it's even worse for those raised by humans and released in the park: 89%. So, that's why DeCandido wants to release as many as possible. In 2002, when he still worked for the parks department, he released 33. You never know which will succeed and breed. One red-phased (that is, red-colored) one released last fall by Horvath already mated.

The park and their upbringing make it harder for the owls--which were, of course, once native to Manhattan and the park. "From my perspective as biologist, once they have enough food, they need sufficient territory with enough tree cavities," DeCandido says. The problem arises when they want to nest and gray squirrels are poking their heads in--and possibly eating eggs. "The other wild card is raccoons," he says. "We don't know what their effect is on nesting."

(Photo of a red-phase Eastern Screech owl in Central park in 2008 by Flickr's Robert rbs10025)

The young ones are also a bit surprised by all the songbirds mobbing them, he says. They should just sit still, back against a trunk. Instead they get spooked and fly--making more of a commotion and easier for the other birds to knock them down. But, they're learning.

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