Manhattan Water Tower Roof Removed: Barn Owl Nest Exposed
State officials ordered a halt to work after the roof was taken off a tower housing the city's first documented barn owl family.
By Malik Salazar ·
State conservation agents ordered the owner of an Upper West Side building to stop demolishing a water tower on Thursday. The directive came after workers removed the structure's roof, exposing a barn owl nest that had been a local sensation for weeks.
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation stated in a statement that its agents investigated the site and found the roof had been taken away, leaving the nest exposed. The department told the building owner to cease demolition work until further notice while officials investigate potential violations.
Jessica Wilson, executive director of the New York City Bird Alliance, reported seeing one owl chick on a nearby building roof on Thursday morning. Wilson noted that barn owls are nocturnal and that chicks should not be outside during the day. She added that the chick appeared to have been removed from the nest and that no other chicks were visible.
The owl family was discovered several weeks ago and attracted crowds of residents and nature photographers to the street. It is believed to be the first documented case of barn owls nesting in Manhattan in modern history. The water tower sits on the rooftop of the building where the birds had been living.
Residents reported construction activity on the tower top on Thursday morning. When Wilson arrived at the building, no workers were present, but state conservation agents had also arrived. They gained access to the roof with permission from the building superintendent and confirmed the roof section was missing.
Erik Bottcher, a New York State senator, posted on social media that he was "indignant" over reports that construction work destroyed part of the structure that housed the first Manhattan barn owl nest. He said the work potentially endangered a pair of owls and their several chicks. Bottcher noted that active nests of migratory birds are protected by state and federal laws and that accountability is needed when these protections are violated.
David Barrett, a Manhattan-based birdwatcher who runs the Manhattan Bird Alert account, observed the tower on Thursday and saw the roof had been removed. He described the nest as "incredibly known" and said it had been widely written about. Barrett stated that the removal should never have happened.
The building superintendent declined to comment when contacted by phone. It is not yet clear who owns the building or who ordered the roof removal. Thomas Obersteiner, an Upper West Side resident, said he saw a man with an extension cord coming down from the water tower around noon on Thursday.
The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation said barn owl sightings in city parks are rare. New York is at the northern edge of the species' range, and the state conservation department said the population has declined at an "alarming rate." Wilson explained that barn owl chicks depend on their parents to bring food to the nest because they do not know how to hunt yet. Without the nest, Wilson said, the group worries the chicks may not survive.
