Pale Male's mate shacks up with boy toy years after iconic NYC hawk's death: 'She's a cougar!'

A 13-year-old red-tailed hawk, Octavia, moved a roughly two-year-old male hawk, Henry, into Pale Male’s former Fifth Avenue nest. Henry was noticed by birders about two months earlier, and his age was estimated from visible yellow in his eyes. After Pale Male died in 2023, Octavia had multiple short-term flings, but returned to Pale Male when suitors could not build a nest. The pair has been seen flying out together for meals and maintaining their home, while cuddling their newly hatched chick. Birders are excited about the new family after the loss of Pale Male.

"Octavia moved her feathered fresh squeeze Henry into the Fifth Avenue nest once ruled by Pale Male several months ago, and the pair quickly got down to it, according to avid avian watchers. "She's a cougar!" exclaimed Stella Hamilton, a fan who had been watching the roughly 13-year-old ladybird since she first moved into Pale Male's nest in 2014. "We thought she was past her prime. The last baby she had was in 2018, and then Pale Male died. And then suddenly, here comes a new guy, and boom! She laid an egg, and it hatched.""

"Birders first took note of Henry about two months ago but initially didn't pay much mind to the estimated 2-year-old hawk. Octavia was known for being a promiscuous bird and had a series of flings since Pale Male died in 2023 at the incredible age of 33 - and even had a torrid affair with another hawk during their famous romance. But her illicit paramour didn't know how to build a nest to her liking, and she returned to Pale Male. She seemingly had the same issue with all of her short-term suitors since her husband's death, too."

"Henry, a name bestowed on the bird by the popular channel Manhattan Bird Alert, was the first hawk that Octavia invited into her 927 Fifth Ave. penthouse. Birders estimate that Henry is around 2 years old based on the yellow still visible in his eyes. Red-tailed hawk's eyes grow darker as they age. The pair has been seen flying out together for meals and sprucing up their home, in between cuddling up with their little fuzzball that hatched sometime last month."

"Birders are ecstatic over the adorable new family, especially in the wake of the still-stinging loss of Pale Male. The bird was famous during his three-decade tenure as the neighborhood king, during which time he mated with a"

Read at New York Post