It's almost hard to believe when you look out your window and see nothing but metal, glass and asphalt, but New York City is home to an amazing array of wildlife. And some of these inhabitants are quite varied-- and not only the roaches, pigeons and rats you might expect.
Many of the more unusual species make their homes in the outer boroughs-- which makes sense, considering these places contain a greater amount of wooded parkland. But did you know we have flocks of parrots, opossums and raccoons right here in Manhattan? And occasionally we have an unusual wild visitor-- in 1995 a Florida Manatee was spotted in the East River. So use this topic to post news, memories and reflections about wildlife in this big city...
In my neighborhood, the Lower West Side, I have spotted Mourning Doves and Owls. A pair of noisy crows lives out back, and a large colony of bats (which I love, of course) has taken up residence in the framework of one of those huge advertising signs that seem to perch on every building down here. They leave their nest every evening at sunset, and it is quite a sight to see. I also often see falcons and hawks swooping from their nests on the taller buildings. Of course the most famous hawk these days, Pale Male, resides much further uptown, high above Fifth Avenue, off Central Park. He even has his own website:
here
And recently, a year-old harp seal came to visit near Battery Park City. Isn't she lovely?
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