Inwood Hill Park - May 12 - Birds, butterflies, and flowers

I was only able to get into the park for a short time in the late morning. Still, it was a fun, productive walk. I will get to the birds in a moment. On the walk I had several first of the year butterflies. The first was an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail on the large Lilac bush at the meadow overlook.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail                                              © Joseph DiCostanzo

Nearby, west of the railing fence at the overlook, I spotted a small dark butterfly on a Dandelion flower which proved to be a Juvenal's Duskywing.

Juvenal's Duskywing                                                                                           © Joseph DiCostanzo

Further north along the ridge a large, dark swallowtail flew quickly by me under the trees. Unfortunately, the fleeting view of it did not allow me to identify it, so what would have been my third first of the year butterfly got away. There were also lots of Cabbage Whites flying around the park. Near where I saw the dark swallowtail I noticed a Herb-Robert in bloom. I later came across a good size group of this pretty little wildflower member of the geranium family on another trail.

Herb-Robert                                                                                    © Joseph DiCostanzo

Finally, getting to the birds - there were still a lot around, if perhaps not as many as the last couple of days. However, it was hard to make a fair comparison with the weekend since I went in to the park a few hours later than on the last two mornings and was in for a much shorter time. Even with that smaller effort I recorded 49 species, including 12 warblers. I did not get any new species for the year. The most unusual bird was a late Dark-eyed Junco feeding on one of the roads. on the ridge.

Canada Goose
Mallard
Double-crested Cormorant
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Chimney Swift
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
House Wren
Swainson's Thrush
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Ovenbird
Black-and-white Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
American Redstart
Northern Parula
Magnolia Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Canada Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Song Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco

Dark-eyed Junco                          © Joseph DiCostanzo

Scarlet Tanager
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Baltimore Oriole
House Sparrow