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The Pale Male, a red-tailed hawk who brought a touch of the wild to swanky Manhattan as he nested above Fifth Avenue for three decades, has died.
The Pale Male died Tuesday after being found sick and grounded in Central Park, wildlife rehabilitator Bobby Horvath said. posted on Facebook. The hawk is believed to be 33 years old.
Horvath posted that he took Pale Male and took him to his rehab group’s vet, who did blood work and X-rays. The hawk later ate some food but remained weak and lethargic, Horvath said. “We were hoping for any progress, but unfortunately it was not meant to be,” he said.
The Pale Male, named for his white plumage, was first seen in Central Park as a juvenile in 1991 and began nesting on Fifth Avenue across from the park in 1993.
Bird lovers flock to the park to watch the Pale Male and his succession of mates hatch and raise their young each spring.
Birders were outraged in 2004 when Pale Male’s nest with ex-mate Lola was dislodged from its perch on the 12th floor of a ritzy apartment building whose residents included actor Mary Tyler Moore and CNN anchor Paula Zahn. Moore publicly opposed the removal of the nest.
The co-op board, which voted to remove the nest as a hazard, was quick returned to himself and restored a row of anti-pigeon spikes used by hawks to anchor their nest, and even added a new metal “cradle” on the wall. The Pale Male and Lola rebuild their nest.
As his legend grew, Pale Male was the subject of a 2009 documentary, “The Legend of Pale Male,” and at least three illustrated children’s books.
Horvath wrote in his post that the Pale Male inspires bird lovers and photographers around the world. Some photograph the bird professionally, he wrote, but “most are just local residents or tourists who just want a chance to see this famous falcon.”
David Barrett, who runs the birding Twitter Accounts including Manhattan Bird Alert, say that for most of Pale Male’s life “he was not only the world’s most famous red-tailed hawk, but he was probably the world’s most famous bird, known as to the people of the name.”
Barrett said the hawk’s popularity “shows that even in a heavily urbanized area like Manhattan, there are a lot of people who love wildlife and feel a connection to it.”
It is difficult to know with 100% certainty that the hawk that died on Tuesday was the Pale Male, because the Pale Male does not have a band.
Some observers began to think about 2021 when the Pale Male died and was replaced in the nest on Fifth Avenue by another falcon similar to him.
No eggs have been seen in the nest in recent breeding seasons, which Barrett said points to the possibility that the resident male hawk is actually an older Pale Male, no longer interested in breeding.
Horvath said he believed the hawk whose last hour he witnessed on Tuesday was Pale Male, a bird he had followed for 20 years.
“I saved her poisoned children,” Horvath said in an interview. “I have his family history.”
If the Pale Male lived past 30, his lifespan would be one of the longest on record for a red-tailed hawk. He survived many mates including Chocolate, Blue, Lola and Lima. His most recent spouse was Octavia.
He is survived by an unknown number of descendants.
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