Urban Observation of the Week: Wimbledon Birds

Last week I was watching some top-notch tennis on TV as Coco Gauff battled to stay in at Wimbledon. I was amused when a small bird, what seems to be a Wagtail (Motacilla alba), flew out onto the court and perched calmly on the net! Not being a huge tennis fan, I was surprised and amused to learn that this is a common occurrence – birds regularly interrupt tennis matches at Wimbledon! What would drive this little bird down into a stadium full of people? Food? Perceived safety?

I was even more amused when I learned that Wimbledon employs a Harris Hawk named Rufus to police the court and keep the birds away from the tennis matches! Urban birds being policed by captive hawks!

Do you have a photo or video of an urban species doing something unusual? What about a rare plant or animal that you were surprised to find in a city? If so, let Lindsay know or Tweet at us and you could be featured as a future observation of the week!

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Kristin Winchell

Assistant Professor at New York University

Co-founder of LITC along with E. Carlen and L. Miles. I'm an Assistant Professor in the Biology department at New York University. I study urban evolution from a functional morphological perspective. I like herps.

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