Officials take down nest hoping to relocate Stonington hawk linked to recent attacks

Stonington - It's not often that police here have a chance to break out their riot helmets.

But they did on Tuesday morning as animal control officers Rae-Jean Davis and Tanya Wescovich donned the shielded helmets and thick gloves to destroy the nest of a red-tailed hawk that has been attacking people along Carriage Drive.

With the assistance of Old Mystic firefighters and their ladder truck, they removed the twigs and leaves that made up the nest and cut down the branches that supported it. The riot helmets and gloves, as well as the large fishing net, umbrella and tennis rackets they carried, provided protection in case the aggressive hawk attacked as they ascended the 30 feet up to the nest.

Although two hawks could be seen circling in the sky above just before the firetruck arrived, they disappeared during the nest removal.

"I think the last time we had to use the riot gear was in 1983 when we had to help out at an incident at Electric Boat," said police Sgt. Bruce Smith Tuesday. "I've been involved in a lot of things over the years but never a hawk's nest removal."

Police decided to take down the nest last week after the hawk cut a woman with its talons as she walked past. The woman needed to go to the hospital for treatment of a scalp wound. That attack prompted school officials to stop outdoor gym and recess at nearby Deans Mill School. Those activities resumed a few days later.

The attack along the narrow dirt road was the latest in a string of incidents dating back to last summer in which residents said the hawk dive bombed them and their cars. Residents said the hawk has nested there the past three years.

Firefighters had to steer the large truck down the narrow dirt road and then maneuver the ladder through the trees Tuesday morning. As they went along they had to cut branches with a chain saw before they could reach the nest, which took about 30 seconds to pull down. The firefighters then cut the branches that supported the nest so the hawk would not be tempted to rebuild in the same spot.

"We're very grateful for the fire department's help. There's no other way we could get up there," Smith said.

Davis said there were no eggs or chicks in the nest. If there had been, she said they would not have removed the nest.

It is hoped the hawk will now nest farther away from the road where it will not perceive people walking past as a threat.

Margarett Jones, the executive director of the Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center, said last week there is still time for a hawk to build a new nest before it needs to lay eggs.

"The last thing we wanted to do was harm him. Hopefully he'll relocate and that will be the end of the problem," Smith said.

Davis said that while the hawk can't nest in the tree again, there isn't anything that could stop it from building a nest in an adjacent tree.

"If that happens we'll have to come up with a Plan B," she said.

Carriage Road resident Cyndy Rowley said the hawk often flies at her car windshield when she drives by and at her son when he walks to the bus stop. She said her husband will finally be able to finish filling potholes on the street without a lookout.