Young hawk rescued from 50-foot oak tree
A young hawk that had become trapped in netting in a tall oak tree in Cutchogue was freed Sunday afternoon thanks to the help the owner of Shamrock Tree Company in Mattituck.
The hawk, believed to be a young Redtail, had become tangled in netting that had blown up into the tree from a nearby vineyard, said Jonathan Shipman, who helped rescue the bird at about 4 p.m.
Mr. Shipman, an arborist who also owns Shamrock Tree Company, said the bird’s feet and talons — which were about an inch long — were tangled in netting commonly used to wrap and protect vines.
“I think he was exhausted,” he said. “He didn’t have much fight left in him when I got up there. He had been up there all day.”
Elijah’s Lane resident John Zurawski and his wife, Pattie, had discovered the bird, which they believed had been stuck in the tree just east of The Plantage nursery for about 12 hours, maybe more, Mr. Shipman said.
After getting the call, he said he and a few family members met the Zurawski’s with a company bucket truck, and a good pair of leather gloves.
“I grabbed his feet and unwrapped the netting,” he said.. “When I let go he flew away, but only a couple hundred feet. I guess he was so exhausted. After, we took as much of the netting that was in the tree down that we could.”
Redtail hawks are the most common hawk in North America, according to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
Mr. Shipman said he believes the bird had a wingspan of about two feet.
