Red-tails in Love: Pale Male's Story—A True Wildlife Drama in Central Park

by Marie Winn

Updated Edition—Ten Years Later

The scene of this enchanting (and true) story is the Ramble, an unknown wilderness deep in the heart of New York's fabled Central Park. There an odd and amiable band of nature lovers devote themselves to observing and protecting the park's rich wildlife. When a pair of red-tailed hawks builds a nest atop a Fifth Avenue apartment house across the street from the model-boat pond, Marie Winn and her fellow "Regulars" are soon transformed into obsessed hawkwatchers. The hilarious and occasionally heartbreaking saga of Pale Male and his mate as they struggle to raise a family in their unprecedented nest site, and the affectionate portrait of the humans who fall under their spell will delight and inspire readers for years to come.

Genres: Nonfiction, Birds, Nature, Animals, Science, Natural History, New York

352 pages, Paperback

First published March 17, 1998

About the author

Marie Winn writes a column on nature and birdwatching for the Wall Street Journal. Married to the film-maker and palindromist Allan Miller, she spends part of every day in Central Park.

Reviews

[booklady · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful book about the true story of red-tail hawks who settled and 'raised' a family in Central Park. Yes, that's right, New York. Unfortunately, I have an old copy of this charming book which has since been updated. It's an on-going story--where nature is concerned the cycle continues ever onward. Read this when we were still homeschooling. We love to watch the birds and we've sighted a few hawks ourselves. Exciting! It must have been a good book; my notes indicate I read it in five days.

May 27, 2022: Updated to remove obsolete link.

[Marcie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started reading this book early on in the pandemic and I am fortunate enough to live near Central Park. This book inspired me to walk in the park every day and observe the wildlife. It was life changing for me, and got me through the last year.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

(3.5) In the early 1990s, Wall Street Journal columnist Winn fell in with an earnest group of birdwatchers who monitor the daily activity in New York City’s Central Park, a haven for wildlife. Through the Register, a logbook stored in a boathouse, they share sightings and track patterns. Relative rarities thrive and breed each year. Before long the book zeroes in on a famous pair of red-tailed hawks, “Pale Male” and a series of females. Winn emphasizes the “drama” of her subtitle, arranging the content into Acts and Scenes that span about five years.

Wild birds face many risks, most of them the fault of humans, and there are some distressing losses here. It is thus a triumph when Pale Male and his mate successfully raise three chicks on the façade of a Fifth Avenue apartment building (home to Mary Tyler Moore, with Woody Allen across the street). The birdwatchers are vigilant, sending letters to the apartment manager and calling park staff to ensure the birds are left in peace. No doubt it’s easier to disseminate information and assign responsibility now what with WhatsApp and Twitter. Indeed, I found the book a little dated and the anthropomorphizing somewhat over-the-top, but Winn makes a sweet, rollicking yarn out of people getting invested in nature.

Originally published on my blog, Bookish Beck.

[Laura Lewakowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this! Especially since I was planning a trip to NYC. I actually spotted red-tails in Central Park two days in a row, right where the author said they would be. AND I found the official Central Park bird log at the boat house and entered my sighting! Great book for New York nature lovers.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Central Park. Obsessive birders. Birds galore. Hawk romance. What is there not to love? This is a true story about Pale Male, a renowned red-tailed hawk, that successfully nested and bred in this famous urban wilderness. The writing is bit precious and dated at times, but the love these birders have for these creatures, is evident on every page.

[Kerry · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was sort of cute. There were some weird terminology things but maybe it's just because it was written 15 years ago? She keeps saying "telescopes" when I think she probably means "spotting scopes." And she rarely says "birders," they're "birdwatchers."

For someone who actually is a birder, some of the explanations (especially in the beginning) are a little tedious and the descriptions of birds and people a little precious. And she anthropomorphizes the hell out of the birds but at least she acknowledges it. And I rolled my eyes at lot. Like at the dumb names they named the hawks ("First Love"? Gross.) And how when she encountered a human skull (in a laboratory setting) she "shuddered." Basically the people all sound like a bunch of over-enthusiastic dorks but that's birders, right? Who am I kidding.

Also the only reason that anything that happens in the book is remarkable, is because it's happening in the middle of New York City. Every once in a while I'd think "oh, I'd like to see that! Maybe we should go up -- " and then catch myself. Because there are SO MANY opportunities for so much more amazing stuff (naturally speaking) between me and New York, but if you yourself are already stuck in the middle of Manhattan, then this is great! And wondrous! And amazing! But if you're not, then this shit's small potatoes. Ooh boy a killdeer family. @@

But yes, it was very nice, and the next time I'm in New York anyway, for some other New York-only reason, I'd like to take the time to check out Central Park now that I know a little more about it. And maybe I would recommend it to New Yorkers who were thinking about taking up birding (you know who you are.)

[Suzy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book more. I found the writing to be a bit too precious and the adulation of Woody Allen (whose penthouse apartment was adjacent to where the hawks nested) almost unbearable. Granted, the book was published in 1996 before some of the more heinous revelations of his predatory behavior surfaced, but the book was amended and re-released a decade later, and still we get breathless narrative about him. I was also disgruntled that her brief history of Central Park did not acknowledge either that it is built on land stolen from the real native New Yorkers or that a village made up of Irish immigrants and free African-Americans was demolished for Olmstead's vision. I was far more interested in the descriptions of wildlife in Central Park, and reading it did make me want to research and go on some nature walks next time I'm in NYC. The lengthy descriptions of the "Regulars" and "Big Guns" didn't really hold my interest. Also, we now know that feeding old bread to ducks is really bad for them.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read - I enjoyed it so much I basically read it in one sitting. An uplifting story about a male hawk and his various mates as they build their nest each year on a ledge of an apartment building near Central Park. These hawks bring together experienced birdwatchers along with others who are drawn in by the unlikely magic of this ritual in such a busy place. The author shares her joys and worries about the hawks as well as other bird sightings and pairings throughout the park. A great read for anyone who loved the natural worls and/or NYC.

[Molly Singer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely story about birds in Central Park and the people who watch them. This book made me want to go see all the locations of interest in Central Park! It's fascinating to think of birding in such an urban landscape. Reading this book had a nostalgic and eerie feeling as well - being published in 1998 and telling of events prior to that, all of the birds, and in fact many of the people mentioned, are now gone from this world. The birders communicated with each other through a handwritten register and phone chains. I wonder what they all think of eBird rare alerts now!

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet book, from 25 years ago, about the birds and birdwatchers of Central Park. The redtails are a theme in the book, but there are tons of other birds (and other creatures). Very nice writing.

[Katherine Hays · Rating 3 out of 5]

finally finished with this book!!! definitely liked it a lot more than i thought i would for a book about birds… thank u jeff for suggesting that i read this

[Patrick McGrady · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't like this book as much as I thought I would but it is hard to get less than 3 stars from me when the book is about birds. The author and the characters in the book were very knowledgeable about birds. This wasn't a book written by non-bird people. These are legit REAL birders. No question about that. That being said, there was SO much anthropomorphism in this book that it made me cringe. I love birds and nature as much as anyone. I understand that people have the best intentions in wanting to help birds and often project human emotions (sadness, anger, loneliness, etc.) onto them but the best thing humans can do with wild nature is to not intervene. Let wild animals be wild. Even in the middle of New York City.

This book did bolster my desire to go birding in Central Park. The get Cerulean and Worm-eating Warblers there?? Sign me up.

[Nancy Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wonder if the Bird Register still exists now that we have eBird.

[Vera · Rating 4 out of 5]

A charming book about a group of people who become enthralled with bird-watching in Central Park, and then obsessed with a pair of breeding red-tails nesting on a building along said park. What I loved about this was how deeply the group of birders came to care about the fate of these birds and their chicks (going out in shifts, even before sunrise, to keep an eye on the nest through spotting scopes) -- and how they drew in so many bystanders, tourists, building managers, and even celebrities (Woody Allen and Mary Tyler Moore!) to share their interest and caring. Marie Winn is such a humble author and though she tries to hide it, directing our attention to many other human characters, it's clear she may have been the one who came to love these birds the most. She was there and looking out for their interests at almost every point in the drama.

A good reminder that the magic and discoveries of the natural world are not only off in some national park, but right in our own backyards for those who take the time to look.

[Marta Mills · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you enjoy reading about birds and the people who like to watch birds, then this book is for you. It follows a group of dedicated bird watchers in Central Park, which you may not know is one of the best birding places in the world, despite being surrounded by the largest city in the U.S.!

As the title suggests, one day members of the group see a red-tailed hawk circling the park. The hawk soon attracts a mate. Marie Winn reports on these birds over several seasons of courtship, nest-building, and more. But the "regulars" also watch other bird species and a good number of other flora and fauna in the park. Marie Winn is a faithful reporter of the bird facts of the day as well as the interesting human interactions. The intertwining stories of birds and birdwatchers and her joy and humanity chronicling this passion for birds, are lovely and life-affirming.

[Florence Buchholz · Rating 5 out of 5]

For years a few devoted, weather-resistant folks have been watching birds in New York's Central Park. A famous brood of red-tail hawks that first nested on the 12th floor ledge of a 5th Avenue apartment building continues to thrive under difficult urban conditions. The bird advocates have had to do battle with property managers, maintenance workers, and a city bureaucracy who either deliberately or unwittingly attempt to destroy nests.

This is a beautiful, life affirming story of a green oasis situated in the heart of one of the most congested areas on earth. The hawks are majestic creatures, exciting to witness. (When they are dining on freshly killed carrion, I would suspend my glance, still happy that they are thriving.) Every wild creature seeks to survive and procreate. Red-tails in Love reveals a rare, heartening success.

[Marsha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ms. Winn was drawn into the saga of Pale Male, a splendid red-tailed hawk spotted on a high building near one of New York’s most famous parks. Over the course of months, she became an amateur bird-watcher, along with dozens of others. Her book records her delighted enchantment with the bird’s progress as mate and father, the friendships she made with others just as interested in the avian’s behavior and the gradually increasing media attention to the status of Pale Male and all the other wild and not-so-wild denizens of Central Park. This is a thoroughly gripping, fact-filled but never boring look at the gradual evolution of Central Park from pleasure garden to partially domesticated preserve.

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun, fast read chronicling the lives of the first red-tailed hawks to nest in and around Central Park in New York City. (Well, I'm sure years ago there were lots. These are the first ones in a while.) Winn writes about the community of birders that spotted and supported the hawks, and tells the story of their first few years.

It's a compelling, engaging book, and a fascinating look at how birds affect humans and humans affect birds.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was a great book. It was an easy read, and I was readily drawn into the many stories of the birds, people, and hawks of Central Park. I loved that the book wasn't just about Pale Male (who is awesome and a total hawk celebrity) but also about the community of people who came to love and respect (and advocate!) for him. If it was just a book about hawks, it wouldn't have been the same!

[Kerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I simply adored this little jewel of a book, written with wit and with love. The first section, which described how the author became a devoted birdwatcher, and her ensuing acquaintance with the regular, expert birders of Central Park, was sweet and fun. The tale of the 5th Avenue Red-tails had enough highs and lows, romance and drama to be on par with any good human-based love story. It gladdened my heart to know that stories like this one happen, and people like the birdlovers of NYC exist.

[Wei-Wei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful! I love reading true stories of wildlife. The anthropomorphism bits were especially wonderful because I indulge in it so often.
Winn writes spectacularly, leveling science with heart and tidbits and character elegantly.

[Fabiola Del Aguila · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful story about red tailed hawks in Central Park. Moving and thoughtful, Marie Winn does a wonderful job of taking you on a journey through Central Park and discover all the tales of the wildlife that lives and migrates through there.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely adore this book. I learned so much about Central Park and in particular the birding culture of the area. I loved reading about the red-tailed Hawks and it warmed my heart to read about thoughtful they were about the Hawk's new home.

[Eleanor · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! It was a surprising page- turner as she followed the stories of the Red-tailed Hawks and others. And the human birds watching the feathered ones! It is a love story of birds and birdwatchers in Central Park.

[SueSue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, how could you not love this story! Just as much about Central Park birders and other wildlife as it is about the 'tails. But Winn's passion makes it a worthwhile read.

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book. The human aspect made it even more interesting. Loved learning about all the wildlife in NYC in Central Park

[Anita · Rating 5 out of 5]

A true story about birdwatchers and hawks in New York City. A great book club book.

[Ben Leach · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an unexpected delight this was!

The reason I love perusing used book stores is discovering a book published prior to when I became a more active reader, and I'll read the description and go, "That sounds right up my alley!" As a science writer, I wish I had immersed myself in nature writing like this more frequently, but by the same token, I'm glad I can appreciate a good story like this.

I was too young to have been aware of the hullaballoo surrounding the red-tail hawks in Central Park in the late 1990s. But in the last couple of years, I've tried to get better about recognizing the different species of birds around me, particularly the chatty ones in a nearby nature trail. So a story about amateur birderwatchers and enthusiasts documenting a romance story between red-tail hawks sounded interesting to me.

Marie Winn does a nice job of creating one throughline about the red-tail hawks with other species of birds that have found their way into Central Park amidst the city that never sleeps. There are wonderful, shorter anecdotes that couldn't quite take up an entire book on their own, but it helps visitors to Central Park appreciate the biodiversity at play and the strange sites one may experience if they pay attention long enough.

I love a book that doesn't overstay its welcome. I breezed through this book in two sittings and it was a delight, particularly as its early spring and the birds are starting to get a little noisier around my neighborhood. Who knows what stories they have to share?

[Phoebe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this up in an Atlanta bookstore recently because I thought maybe my boyfriend would like it . I ended up thumbing through it, and then reading chapter one, and then reading the whole thing in a few days. What a sweet tale! I love this book because it beautifully captures animal essence without anthropomorphizing at all - it doesn’t need to because the animals actions speak for themselves! The birdwatchers lives are so cool to read about too… the lengths they go to for these animals and the care and duty they feel towards them! It makes me wish I had been a part of the birdwatching crew in Central Park 20 years ago. I forgot how nice it is to read about the lives of animals- the author isn’t trying to sell you any ideas, sway you in any animal rights direction. But you end up there on your own because you end up caring about the birds like the author does. Also it’s great to see a real life instance of the community that forms over a common love- in this case birdwatching - and how your appreciation for others in this setting finds the very root of who others are.

[Melanie H · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coronavirus (update: Coronavirus + Rebellion 2020) book review #27 – 4 stars

With a mother and juvenile coopers hawks residing in a white pine tree in our yard this summer, I found this tale of love and life among red-tail hawks captivating.

The circle of life is cruel, but Winn does a fantastic job writing it without our human judgement. But then again, most of us are also meat-eaters with the luxury of averting our eyes … but that is another conversation entirely.

The one difficult characteristic I notice about dedicated bird watchers, however, is the obsessive nature of it. While I love a great bird sighting, I can’t imagine keeping lists and revolving my schedule around watching in the park (sayeth the woman who obsessively keeps track of the books she reads). To each their own.