A beloved female hawk that was starting a family on a lower Manhattan building died after eating poisoned prey, officials said.
A beloved female hawk who was nesting with a mate on the Health Department building in lower Manhattan died last week after being poisoned.
Photographers and hawk lovers watched the tragic scene late last month as the female died slowly while her mate continued to work on their nest atop an air conditioner at the Health Department building on Worth Street.
A necropsy released by the state Department of Environmental Conservation showed the hawk died from poisoning due to an anticoagulant rodenticide.
"That was just so wrenching," said Anne Baxter, 60, a longtime neighborhood resident who had enjoyed watching the feathered family try to set down roots. "People were just delighted to see them — workers from the court buildings and everyone. It was a community experience."
The incident has sparked calls from Baxter and other animal lovers who say the city should use other methods to control the booming rat population.
The female hawk had likely eaten a rodent that ingested poison.
The red-tailed hawk apparently ingested rat bait at Columbus Park and died. Enlarge 
Signs in Columbus Park warned of rodent bait stations, but hawks can’t read. Enlarge
Adding to the tragedy, she had already laid one egg that rolled off the air conditioner nest. The necropsy showed she was ready to lay more eggs.
Photographer Laura Goggin captured the sad scene on March 30 as the male hawk continued to bring twigs to the nest as his mate slowly died on a tree branch. He even tried to roust her with no success.
"It was horrible," Goggin told the News. "She had been so energetic. Watching these birds was so fun."
Parks Department officials said the agency avoids using rat poison in parks where there are hawks during the February to August nesting season.
But they were not aware of the pair near Collect Pond Park and Columbus Park, where signs show rodenticide is being used.
"We were actively baiting when both agencies learned of the nesting just a few days prior to the bird's death," said a Health Department spokesman. "Baiting has been temporarily suspended as we investigate alternative methods of addressing the rodent infestation."