April 30 - Central Park

A cool, but mostly sunny in the Ramble for my Thursday morning AMNH bird walk group. We did not have any large numbers of birds, but there was a nice variety with several species we had not yet had this season. The best bird was a male Blue-winged Warbler south of the Azalea Pond, thanks to Jeff Kimball who called me on my cell phone to let me know about the bird and who then stayed with it until we arrived. The total list of 41 species is below, with a couple of pictures.

Canada Goose
Mallard
Double-crested Cormorant
Cooper's Hawk (south of the feeders)
Red-tailed Hawk (2; an immature was perched in a tree over the park drive when we first headed into the Ramble; two hours later when we were leaving it was on the same branch, now facing the other way.)

immature Red-tailed Hawk 04/30/2015 Central Park drive

Herring Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Chimney Swift (3-4 overhead)
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker (1, east of the archway near the Upper Lobe)
Northern Flicker
Great Crested Flycatcher (one called once northeast of Evodia Field)
Blue-headed Vireo (3-4)
Blue Jay
Northern Rough-winged Swallow (2; the Lake)
Black-capped Chickadee (1, Upper Lobe)
Carolina Wren (1; singing near the Point)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (still a few around)
Hermit Thrush (scattered individuals)
American Robin
Gray Catbird (2; the first we have seen this season)
European Starling
Northern Waterthrush (1; singing near Hernshead)
Blue-winged Warbler (1; south of Azalea Paond)
Black-and-white Warbler (cattered individuals)
Northern Parula (1; Upper Lobe on the way in)
Yellow Warbler (1; male, Upper Lobe on the way out)
Palm Warbler (fewer than recently; but still all aorund the Ramble)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (everywhere in small numbers)
Eastern Towhee (several heard; one cooperative male on south side of Turtle Pond)

Eastern Towhee 04/30/2015 Central Park

Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Baltimore Oriole (I spotted a male briefly northeast of Evodia Field)
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow

When we were headed west to leave the Ramble there were two racoons snuggled together in a treeover the path well west of the Azalea Pond.

Racoons 04/30/2015 Central Park