Syracuse University Red-Tailed Hawk Family
Follow the Red-Tailed Hawk Tales Facebook page for more updates.
Timeline (2016 - Present)
October 17, 2021
- A21 left Oakwood as a skilled hunter and flyer ready to be on his own and did not return.
September 1, 2021
- B21 left Oakwood as a skilled hunter and flyer ready to be on his own and returned a few times in the fall.
July 15, 2021
- A21 was released in Oakwood cemetery after being rehabilitated by wildlife rehabilitator, Cindy Page for a bruised wing and minor head injury.
July 5, 2021
- A21 injured in window strike at SU’s Heroy Geology building and transported to Janet Swanson Wildlife Hospital in Ithaca.
June 16, 2021
- A21 fledged at 06:40 at age 50 days.
June 15, 2021
- B21 fledged at 05:45 at age 47 days.
May 7, 2021
- Egg #1 declared non-viable/incomplete hatch after 48 days of incubation.
April 29, 2021
- Egg #3, B21 hatched after 40 days of incubation.
April 27, 2021
- Egg #2, A21 hatched after 35 days of incubation.
March 26, 2021
- SU-Sue laid third egg at 10:17, 2 days, 20 hours and 11 minutes after second egg.
March 23, 2021
- SU-Sue laid second egg at 11:06, 2 days, 20 hours and 4 minutes after first egg.
March 20, 2021
- SU-Sue laid first egg at 15:02.
March 8, 2021
- First witnessed mating of the season.
February 5, 2021
- New Hawk Nest Camera installed in Lyman Hall West Archway.
August 31, 2020
- B20 left Oakwood for the first time and returned periodically through the fall, then went off as a skilled flyer and hunter ready to be on her own.
August 27, 2020
- The last day I saw A20 and C20 in Oakwood, both returned periodically through the fall and each left as a skilled flyer and hunter ready to be on their own.
June 17, 2020
- C20 fledges at 06:58 at age 48 days
June 15, 2020
- A20 fledges at 12:25 at age 48 days
June 14, 2020
- B20 fledges at 05:24 at age 46 days
June 3, 2020
- PTZ camera moved from LSC to Hinds Hall to get a diagonal view of the new nest.
April 29, 2020 to April 30, 2020
- B20 and C20 hatch sometime within that time frame as evidenced by Sue pulling half an eggshell out of the nest.
April 28, 2020
- A20, first chick hatches as evidenced by parents bringing prey to the nest to feed the new hatchling.
March 1, 2020
- SU-Sue and Otto choose a new nest site and build on the west side, north archway of Lyman Hall. Plans to move the new PTZ from LSC to the new nest site are halted due to COVID-19. All observations of the hawks activities are now from the ground, chronicled on the Facebook page Red-Tailed Hawk Tales.
January 24, 2020
- New PTZ cam installed on Life Science Center (LSC) facing the Lyman Hall nests to provide a sweeping visual field to observe SU-Sue and Otto arrivals and departures and chick fledges.
September 11, 2019
- A19 left Oakwood for the first time and returned periodically through November 11, 2019, then went off ready to be on her own.
September 1, 2019
- B19 left Oakwood cemetery and did not return. He left as a skilled flyer and hunter ready to be on his own.
June 26, 2019
- A19 fledges at 05:12 at age 51 days.
June 18, 2019
- B19 fledges at 09:17 at age 44 days.
May 9, 2019
- In consultation with our wildlife specialists, we concluded Egg#1 is non-viable. Today is 44 days since the egg was laid and is beyond the expected time of viability based upon historical hatch data from the nests at Syracuse University and Cornell Lab of Ornithology. This is not an uncommon occurrence in nature. We will never know the exact cause, but it is possible the egg may not have fertilized or there could have been a genetic problem with the embryo.
May 6, 2019
- Egg #3 B19 hatches at 13:10 after 35 days of incubation.
May 5, 2019
- Egg #2, A19 hatches at 06:12 after 37 days of incubation.
April 2, 2019
- SU-Sue lays third egg and the 2019 clutch is complete
March 30, 2019
- SU-Sue lays second egg
March 27, 2019
- SU-Sue lays first egg
March 20, 2019
- First observed mating of the season
February 22, 2019
- New PTZ cameras were installed in both the North and South archways of Lyman Hall.
January 6, 2019
- Red-Tailed Hawk Tales Facebook page was created. Stories, photographs, videos and educational information about the SU hawks will be shared throughout the year.
Fall 2018
- B18 and C18 are seen periodically in Oakwood cemetery before venturing to find their own territory.
August 10, 2018
- A18 was found ill on the ground in Oakwood cemetery, was taken to the Janet L. Swanson Wildlife Healthcare Center and did not survive. A necropsy revealed the cause of death as West Nile Virus.
August 2, 2018
- C18 was released in Oakwood cemetery after 41 days of treatment and rehabilitation by Cindy Page, wildlife rehabilitator and Janet L. Swanson Wildlife Healthcare Center.
June-July 2018
- Otto and SU-Sue continued to feed and teach the remaining chicks A18 and B18 how to hunt on the SU campus before “migrating” to nearby Oakwood cemetery.
June 22, 2018
- C18 sustained a fracture of the coracoid bone in his right wing after he struck a window on Hinds Hall. He was treated at the Janet L. Swanson Wildlife Healthcare Center, Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine in Ithaca, NY.
June 4, 2018
- A18 fledges at 15:28 at age 49 days.
June 2, 2018
- B18 fledges at 08:28 at age 46 days.
June 2, 2018
- C18 fledges at 07:58 at age 45 days.
April 19, 2018
- C18 hatches at 17:06 after 33 days of incubation.
April 18, 2018
- B18 hatches soon after midnight after 32 days of incubation.
April 17, 2018
- A18 hatches at 17:47 after 31 days of incubation.
March 17, 2018
- SU-Sue lays third egg.
March 14, 2018
- SU-Sue lays second egg.
March 11, 2018
- SU-Sue lays first egg.
January – February 2018
- Otto and SU-Sue make return to the nest on Lyman Hall’s north archway, northern-most nest. It was used as an auxiliary nest last year by the parents to store prey and by the chicks as they grew and explored outside of their main nest.
August 27, 2017
- Juvenile C17 was spotted at Oakwood cemetery. This was the last juvenile sighting in 2017. All juveniles are fed and cared for by their parents, usually through the summer and into the fall when they must find their own territory.
June 15, 2017
- The third chick, C17 fledged at 14:08. It flew to a railing across the street next to the Life Sciences Center, the same flight path as A17.
June 11, 2017
- The second chick, B17 fledged beautifully at 13:10. It flew toward the Life Sciences Center roof railing and missed then gently glided down to the ground unharmed. Unfortunately, B17 disappeared and was never found despite several people searching for it.
June 9, 2017
- The first chick, A17 “accidentally” fledged at 17:45. It was flapping its wings, hopping and fell backwards out of the nest. It quickly turned and flew to a railing across the street next to the Life Sciences Center.
April 28, 2017
- The third chick, C17 hatched at 08:35.
April 26, 2017
- The first chick, A17 hatched at 05:48 and the second chick, B17 hatched at 13:25, only seven hours and 37 minutes after A17. Usually chicks hatch 1-2 days apart but hatching on the same day happens on occasion. This close together is quite uncommon, at least from what has been documented on other cams.
March 25, 2017
- SU-Sue laid her third egg at 8:58:58--2 days, 20 hours and 12 minutes after egg #2.
March 22, 2017
- SU-Sue laid her second egg at 1:31:52pm--2 days 20 hours and 43 minutes after egg #1 (March 19, 4:04:32pm)
March 20, 2017
- Official launch of the SU red-tailed hawk nest cam.
- Began continuous 24/7 LIVE online video and audio stream.
- Read the College of Arts and Sciences article.
- Watch the SU News video.
March 19, 2017
- SU-Sue lays her first egg. For the first time ever, SU-Sue's egg laying was viewed LIVE via the newly installed hawk nest cam.
March 2, 2017
- Camera was installed on the 4th floor of the Life Sciences Complex.
- Began continuous 24/7 video capture of long-range view of the North archway.
2016 Season
August 22, 2016
- Fifty-four days after sustaining a life-threatening head injury, through the expert care of the vets at the Janet L. Swanson Wildlife Health Center at Cornell University, and local wildlife rehabilitator Cynthia Page, the hawk was released back to the SU campus on the Quad.
- View the release.
August 11, 2016
- After spending 24 days recovering from a bruised right wing, Aurora was released back to the SU campus on the Quad, and her parents resumed caring for her.
- View the release.
July 11, 2016
- A Facebook page—Syracuse Hawk Chatters—was started for observers to post photographs and daily accounts of the activities of the SU red-tailed hawks.
June 11, 2016
- The first chick fledged. First, it landed on a fence railing near a fraternity house, and then flew to a tree, after which one of the parents delivered its first meal outside the nest.
- View the day's events: Clip 1 | Clip 2 | Clip 3
Spring 2016
- Otto and SU-Sue and another adult female red-tail (named SUNY) were observed together through the winter and into the spring. In preparation for the chicks, the adults refurbished the nest on the North side of the South archway of Lyman Hall. Six chicks hatched in late April or early May and were raised by the three adults. As the chicks began to grow too large for one nest, they walked across the archway ledge to the Southern nest. This ledge was used as a training platform for the chicks to flap their wings in preparation for fledging.
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