Pale Male & Lola to have chicks. Inspired by Spitzers?

I just tried the link and it wouldn't work. The gist of the article was that after four years of failure, the pair apparently are on the verge of having their eggs hatched. One theory is that when the nest area was rebuilt by the apartment managers, the supporting spikes were placed in such a way as to prevent proper nesting. The spikes were replaced at different angles, and this might be a result.

Here is the article in its entirety.
Pale Male hawk and Lola set for first chicks in 4 years
BY KATHLEEN LUCADAMO
DAILY NEWS CITY HALL BUREAU

Thursday, March 13th 2008, 4:00 AM

If the nest is a-rocking, don't come knocking.

Famed Fifth Ave. hawks Pale Male and Lola have a new love nest after four years of failing to hatch eggs - and signs of romance are already in the air.

The rock star red-tailed hawks haven't produced chicks since their nest was destroyed four years ago, a catastrophe that captured worldwide attention.

Bird experts suspect that when the nest was rebuilt, pigeon-proof spikes that formed its foundation were wrongly reconfigured and Lola couldn't get eggs to hatch.

The spikes apparently impeded the bird's ability to keep the eggs warm and roll them, a necessary step to distribute embryonic fluids.

The New York City Audubon Society removed the 92 spikes on Jan.29 and said Lola laid at least one egg in the new nest a week ago.

"Now we are hoping she can roll them and they'll hatch," said Sandy Fiebelkorn, an Audubon spokeswoman.

The usual incubation period for the eggs is 35 to 40 days, said Fiebelkorn, meaning they should hatch around April 15.

"By tax day, we are hoping the eggs will hatch for the first time in four years," she said.

In the past few weeks, Pale Male has been spotted bringing twigs and the like from nearby Central Park to the 927 Fifth Ave. nest to prepare for a new arrival.

"There are people out there with telescopes to see what happens," she said.

Workers for the posh high rise - home to actress Mary Tyler Moore and former CNN anchor Paula Zahn - removed the nest on the 12th-floor ledge at the co-op board's request in 2004.

But bird lovers squawked about the sudden eviction and the board backed off, allowing a new nest to be built in the same spot.

This wasn't the first dry spell for Pale Male: In 1993 and 1994, eggs in the nest guarded by him and his previous mate, Chocolate, did not hatch.

But he produced chicks each year from 1995 to 2004 - 26 in total, 19 which survived to fledge.

"The story of Pale Male and Lola has enthralled New Yorkers," said Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe. "We are hopeful that new chicks are born to continue the cycle of life."

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Re: Pale Male & Lola to have chicks. Inspired by Spitz

remove the errant period at the end of the link, like so --

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2008/03/13/2008-03-13_pale_male_hawk_and_lola_set_for_first_ch-2.html

Thanks, Regis. I hope I can remember that next time this happens. As you probably now know. I subsequently posted the entire article.