Good evening all,
I apologize for the lack of correspondence, but oddly, this thread disappeared for some time shortly after I posted and I assumed it was taken down by a moderator. Imagine my surprise when I logged on again yesterday.
In any event, as I mentioned in my initial post, I am a grad student in animal behavior and I am interested in cataloguing (at least) the occurrence of raptors in Jackson Heights. I do appreciate all of your input thus far.
Yesterday afternoon, I spotted a hawk flying just above the buildings on 80th St between Roosevelt and 37th Ave. I have already observed red-tailed hawks (fairly common in urban areas), at least one immature sharp-shinned hawk (less common, especially in urban areas), and kestrels. The latter are tiny falcons that are beautifully patterned and fairly easy to identify. They can nest in the tightest spots, so they also do well in urban areas.
I would be very interested to know if there are any peregrine falcons in the area as well.
At present, I'm checking with local wildlife agencies and authorities to make certain that any census I decide to undertake is not in violation of any laws.
With that said, one important disclaimer here:
While I'm certain that you are all responsible citizens, for my own piece of mind, I would just like to caution anyone against any type of intrusive investigating that may inadvertently harm birds, their offspring, or themselves. Again, I'm sure none of you would do this, but it would be irresponsible of me not take the precaution of making this expressly clear.
One preliminary question that I do have, is how one would go about getting permission from landlords, co-op boards, etc. to do some exploring in buildings. After all, I certainly respect the fact that no one wants some stranger roaming around their rooftops. At present, I am just asking, because as I mentioned there may be legal issues at the municipal, state and/or federal levels that need to be considered beforehand. But, at the very least it would be good to know that building residents and administrators are amenable to this type of work.
Additionally, all of you who have photos, please post them if you can. If posting them for public view poses any issue, let me know and I can make arrangements to receive them via email. Please note, that these will be used as visual references to gain some idea of species diversity, and WILL NOT under any circumstances be used by me for publication or personal gain.
Once more thank you all for your help. I will be in contact again very soon.
J