Friday, March 10, 2006

And Now for Some Good News (For People Who Like Cute Animal Stories)

Taking a break from the apocalyptic posts about rebuilding the World Trade Center site (scroll down), here's one to warm your hearts. Pale Male and Lola, the hawks that occupy some very nice real estate on the Upper East Side just off Central Park, had been mating mid-air (you try that), and then settled down to take care of their new eggs. The Times reports:

According to bird-watchers who have tracked the hawks' behavior for years, Lola has almost certainly laid eggs. If so, it will be six weeks, or perhaps until the end of April, before an unlikely wildlife saga reaches its climax and baby red-tailed hawks are hatched.

Of course, New Yorkers will recall the fight that erupted last year over the hawks' nest, resulting in their eviction by the Fifth Ave. co-op board, which of course resulted in protests. But like tenacious New Yorkers determined to maintain their coveted address, the hawks are back ... and this year, they've already got a ginned-up PR machine that Lizzie Grubman would only dream about.