Manhattan’s Upper West Side has been reveling in the company of its latest celebrities: a family of barn owls nested in a water tower atop a building near Central Park. This is the first documented instance of barn owls nesting in Manhattan in modern history, according to one expert, and the owls have attracted nightly crowds of people in the street eager to get a glimpse of the elusive birds, per the AP. “Totally shocking,” says Andrew Farnsworth, a migration ecologist at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. “To the best of our knowledge … there hasn’t been a nest … in Manhattan, at least in recorded history.”
It’s not the first time that birds have captivated New Yorkers. For instance, residents have fallen in love with American woodcocks, who are known to stop in midtown Manhattan’s Bryant Park every year as they migrate north in early spring. But barn owl sightings in New York City parks are very rare, per the city’s Department of Parks & Recreation. New York is at the northern fringe of the barn owl’s range, and the barn owl population has declined “at an alarming rate” over time, according to the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation.
Photographers and casual onlookers have gathered on the street on a nightly basis to spot the owls. “I’ve only seen one barn owl ever, and that was in California,” says Val Coleman, a retired New York City resident who was on the Upper West Side earlier this week trying to spot the owls. David Barrett, a birder who runs the popular social-media account Manhattan Bird Alert, says he’s observed at least one adult barn owl and five fledglings at the water tower. He’s also seen an adult owl carrying rodents back to the water tower. There are believed to be two adult owls, and some photographers have claimed to have seen six fledglings, Barrett adds.
“Having one barn owl is a rarity, but it’s not national news. Having a family, for the first time ever, breeding in Manhattan in recorded history, that’s special news,” Barrett says. “There’s lots of excitement among New Yorkers, both birders and non-birders alike, about these owls, because owls really capture the attention,” says Jessica Wilson, executive director of NYC Bird Alliance. “They’re magical, they’re nocturnal, they are secretive, they’re not commonly seen, especially on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. And to have this chance to see these birds is really thrilling.” More here.