Nest Unattended for the first time since March

We could see it coming. Lola off the nest for increasing periods of time. Pale Male spelling her off, but not consistently. Now, in Donna's Field Notes of May 19 [below] it is clear that a new phase is setting in. For the first time the nest was left unattended for the night.

Readers have been writing to ask why the hawks are encountering more attacks from Kestrels, Crows, and other birds. I'd say this is happening because both Lola and Pale Male are far more available to attacks than when Lola spent most of the day quietly incubating on the nest, and Pale Male was hunting, or perched on different rooftops, watertowers etc, looking for prey. Now they are in the air more often, and in sight of watchers at the Hawk Bench. Thus more encounters with other birds are likely to be seen.
We saw many such encounters during the courtship period, when the hawks were in the air much of the time. Now we see these encounters again.

Field Notes 5-19-05

Sunset 8:11PM (NYT),
Temp. 71F,
Wind NNW 3-5MPH,
Humidity 41%,
Mostly sunny, w/cloud cover late afternoon,
Prey Tally-None reported.

All times PM unless otherwise noted.
3:45 Lola on Carlyle 1, Pale Male on nest.
3:58 Both hawks out of sight.
4:06 Pale Male to nest.
4:14 Lola lands on Oreo Grate.
4:20 Pale Male off nest, attacked by gull. Lola off
Oreo grate, chases gull off.  Pale Male back to nest,
Lola back to grate.
4:49 Pale Male looks through twigs alert to Ramble.
5:39 Lola off grate.
5:40 Lola to nest from S.
5:41 Pale Male off nest to N to end of Pond, then
toward Ramble.
5:42 Lola off nest, follows treeline N and W out of
sight.
5:?? Lola attacked by Kestral while on the Crows.    
6:05 Lola and Pale Male Linda 4.
6:06 Pale Male moves to the Lions window.
6:07 Lola leaves Linda and perches next to Pale Male
at the Lion window.
6:09 Lola preens, PM keeps glancing at her, she preens
shoulder, back, PM still alert but intermittantly
looking at her, she looks up and around, not at him
6:12 Pale Male to nest, lands left of center, stands
tail to Bench, looks fown to fifth, surveys territory,
triangulates to Bench, to MB Pond.  Lola preens tail,
scratches.
6:15 Lola up past 927,to N up Fifth into the Park.
6:19 Pale Male starts to settle in, straddles in , a
back and forth fluff, down head to N.
6:24 Gull over Carlyle and then NW.
6:37 Pale Male off nest.
6:47 Pale Male back to nest, lands on N end, watches
Fifth, surveys territory, looks W, works Beak, alert
to NW, settles Head to S.
6:54 Lola to Carlyle 4.
6:56 Lola off.
6:59 Lola to Carlyle 5.
7:06 Lola alert.
7:15 Pale Male alert
7:41 Lola off Carlyle toward Park.
7:43 Pale Male head completely visible, ALERT.
7:51 Lola discovered Oreo antenna.
7:55 Pale Male standing, triangulating, looks down at
Fifth.
8:06 Pale Male moves twig from rear of nest to front,
digs in concave, stands up in concave.
8:11 Lola to nest, Pale Male to linda 5.
8:12 Lola to linda 5,
8:13 Both to Top Lion Floor second window from N.
Lola N, PM in positions.
8:17 Both backs to Bench, Pale Male looks over
shoulder, Lola looks up, Pale Male works beak.
8:18 Both up and off Pale Male across MB Pond to N and
then W at Oreo and Lola to nest, stands.
8:19 Lola off nest low, N and into trees.
8:29 Nest untended, Exit.
Submitted-Donna Browne