May 2 - Inwood Hill Park - Oh what a beautiful morning!

And this isn't even Oklahoma!

It really was a spectacularly beautiful morning in Inwood this morning with a bright, cyrstal blue, cloudless sky and pleasant temperatures. Even the fact that I could only find two warbler species on May 2 did not lessen the morning. Other birds compensated for the paucity of warblers. One of the first birds I encountered going into the park was a singing male Orchard Oriole, my first of the year.

male Orchard Oriole 05/02/2015 Inwood Hill Park

Continuing into the park, several Tree Swallows were hunting over the soccer fields and sometimes landing on the goal posts.

Tree Swallow 05/02/2015 Inwood Hill Park

Though I have seen Tree Swallows in several places this year already, these were the first i have had here in Inwood. The most surprisning bird of the morning was one I only heard. Going up through the Clove I heard the gobble of a Wild Turkey! It has been several years since I have seen turkey in the park so I thought I must be mistaken. However, later in the morning I encountered another local birder who spontaneously asked me if I had seen the tom Wild Turkey that had been in the park over the last week or so. I never did see the turkey this morning, but despite their lare size these birds can be surprisingly hard to find. Baltimore Orioles are definitely in in good numbers now with singing males foud in a number of places. The male below alternated singing with feeding in the catkins.

feeding Baltimore Oriole 05/02/2015 Inwood Hill Park

In the end I found forty species on my nearly three hour leisurely walk. Another highlight was a female Purple Finch up on the ridge. The forecast for tonight is southwest winds, so I am looking forward to tomorrow morning, hoping for the first serious wave of migrants of the spring. My full list is below.

In non-avian nature, up on the ridge I found one of the park's Flowering Dogwoods just starting to bloom. I always look forward to the lovely show this tree puts on each spring. Shadblow0Serviceberry is also starting in the park.

Canada Goose
Mallard
Wild Turkey (1; heard)
Double-crested Cormorant
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Chimney Swift (several overhead)
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Kingbird (1; my first of the year; by the old eagle hacking spot)
Blue Jay
Tree Swallow (see above)
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren (singing)
Veery (1, in the Clove; my first of the year)
Hermit Thrush
Wood Thrush (singing and calling in the Clove)
American Robin (on nests now)
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Yellow Warbler (1; singing male on the ridge)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (several)
Eastern Towhee (calling and singing)
Chipping Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow (still a few around singing)
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole (1; see above)
Baltimore Oriole (see above)
Purple Finch (1; see above)
American Goldfinch (at least one calling as it flew over)
House Sparrow

[UPDATE: At 7:20 pm there was a great Egret feeding in the slatmarsh grass of Muscota Marsh bringing my Inwood day list total to 41.]