WATERLOO - A pair of new downtown tenants have driven many others out of the area. And that's a good thing.

The red-tailed hawks set up shop on the north side of the Black's Building, causing the area's pigeon population to plummet.

"They don't touch our building now," said Vern Nelson Jr., of Nelson Properties, the company that owns the building.

Nelson said the company hatched several plans over the years to lure some kind of bird of prey into nesting there. The goal was to drive away the pigeons, which are viewed as something of a nuisance.

The ploys included playing hawk or great horned owl noises to attract birds.

Nelson said the company got the idea for attracting the hawks from other efforts in Cedar Rapids and from New York City's Pale Male, a hawk who perched on a Fifth Avenue building overlooking Central Park.

Eventually, the couple - dubbed Mr. and Mrs. James Black Hawk - began building their nest in January, Nelson said. The name is a triple reference: to the Black's Co. founder, James Black; the birds themselves; and their county of residence.

The birds have been sitting on three eggs lately. The hatchlings should take about three years to be fully mature.

Red tailed hawks are between 18 and 26 inches in height, with a wingspan of up to 52 inches. Nelson said the birds are a noticeable presence around the building.

"A shadow will come by and you'll know one is coming to the nest," he said.

Nelson said he's seen the hawks flying all over downtown, coasting as far as East High School on their daily rounds.

Red-tailed hawks are protected by the U.S. Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The hawks are indigenous to the Midwest and nest here year-round.

It is a territorial bird, often competing with great horned owls for nesting areas, according to Cornell University's Laboratory of Ornithology.

Nelson said the company plans on setting up a Web camera on the building Web site, blacksbuilding.com, to let the public track the progress of Mr. and Mrs. Black Hawk and their brood.

Contact Josh Nelson

at (319) 291-1565

or josh.nelson@wcfcourier.com.