April 27 - Central Park

Hooray! Hooray! Hooray! My Thursday AMNH bird walk group gets to cheer for three things today. 1) It didn't rain! 2) The Ramble paths were finally open! 3) There were finally some birds around! Now the small print - it wasn't raining, but it was very gray and foggy so visibility was not good. And, yes there were more birds around than any day so far this spring, but because of the difficult visibility conditions many were frustratingly hard to identify as just silhouettes in the tops of the trees. There were lots of Yellow-rumped Warblers all through the Ramble. Mixed in were a variety of other birds. Unfortunately there was no sign of the Barred Owl from yesterday.

Canada Goose (6)
Mallard
Double-crested Cormorant (8)
Great Egret (1, Turtle Pond)
Red-tailed Hawk (2)
Ring-billed Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (1)
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Yellow-throated Vireo (1, heard near Azalea Pond)
Blue-headed Vireo (8, there were at least 4 near Belvedere)
Blue Jay
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee (2)
Tufted Titmouse (3)
White-breasted Nuthatch (1, heard)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (3)
Hermit Thrush (4)
American Robin
Brown Thrasher (1, Maintenance Meadow)
European Starling
Northern Waterthrush (2, Swampy Pin Oak area; Upper Lobe)
Black-and-white Warbler (5)
Yellow Warbler (2, Upper Lobe; Turtle Pond)
Palm Warbler (2)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (50, everywhere)
Black-throated Green Warbler (2, Turtle Pond and east of Upper Lobe)
Eastern Towhee (1)
Swamp Sparrow (1, Azalea Pond)
White-throated Sparrow (16)
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Purple Finch (2, female types)
House Sparrow

April 26 - Central Park

Since my spring AMNH walks started this year in the beginning of April, every week one of the two has been a wet one. So far, the Wednesday and Thursday groups have alternated in which one got the wet weather. Today it was the Wednesday group's turn. Six of my regulars decided to brave the weather. A mist at the start soon increased to a significant drizzle and then a full rain as we headed up to the Belvedere Castle to take advantage of the shelter there over looking Turtle Pond. We checked the weather apps on our "smart" devices and they indicated there would be a break in the rain so we birded from the shelter for a while. Except for seven Double-crested Cormorants lined up together along the south shore of the pond there wasn't much of interest. As the rain started to lift we headed towards the Ramble. Lenore Swenson and I both commented that it only took "one good bird" to turn around a slow morning's birding. As we progressed through the Ramble and out on to the Point, that "one good bird" eluded us. It is the end of April and we couldn't find a single warbler! Defeated we headed out. On our way I saw one of the park's residents signaling us to be quiet as he pointed up into a tree. I looked up to see a large bird perched quietly. My first thought was one of the Red-tailed Hawks was sheltering from the rain, but I quickly realized the shape wasn't right. Raising my binoculars I was surprised to find I was looking at a Barred Owl! The "one good bird" had turned the morning around and rewarded the stalwart six who faced the elements! The full list of only 26 species is below.

Canada Goose
Gadwall (pair on the Lake)
Mallard
Double-crested Cormorant
Ring-billed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Barred Owl (1)
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Blue Jay
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (1)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (2, one singing)
American Robin
European Starling
Eastern Towhee (1, calling)
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow (many singing)
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
American Goldfinch (1)
House Sparrow

January 2017 - some birds from Argentina

Today is a really nasty day in New York City with a cold, wet nor'easter outside. So, I thought I would post a few pictures from warmer climes. In January I was with Helen Hays and some others visiting out colleagues in Argentina while they netted some of our Common Terns from up here. On a couple of mornings I was able to get out to do a little birding in the area around San Clemente del Tuyu, south of Buenos Aires. Below are a few bird shots (in no particular order).

Burrowing Owl 01/05/2017 Punta Rasa

Greater Rhea 01/06/2017 Estancia El Palenque

Southern Lapwing 01/06/2017 Estancia El Palenque

Plumbeous Rail 01/06/2017 Estancia El Palenque

Southern Caracara 01/06/2017 Estancia El Palenque

Guira Cuckoo 01/06/2017 Estancia El Palenque

Wren-like Rushbird 01/07/2017 Estancia El Palenque

Roseate Spoonbill and Silver Teal 01/07/2017 Estancia El Palenque

April 24 - Inwood Hill Park

I went into the park for about ninety minutes this morning. The birding continues to be a bit slow, so i concentrated again on wildflowers. I found the White Trilliums in bloom. I missed them yesterday when I looked for them in the wrong place.

White Trillium 04/24/2017

Common Violets were in bloom in a number of places as I noted yesterday.

Common Violet 04/24/2017

Also in bloom up on the ridge were Virginia Bluebells.

Virginia Bluebells 04/24/2017

Apparently wanting to keep in the blue theme, a Blue Jay posed just off the wall over the Indian Caves.

Blue Jay 04/24/2017

As I said above, the birding was fairly quiet, though there were a number of Yellow-rumped Warblers around the pine groves along the center of the ridge. The one somewhat unusual bird for the park was a lone Rusty Blackbird along the shore of the bay north of the soccer fields. My full lsit of 28 species found is below.

Canada Goose
Mallard
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Egret
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Blue Jay
Fish Crow
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
American Robin
European Starling
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Rusty Blackbird
Common Grackle
House Sparrow

April 23 - Inwood Hill Park

Ann and a friend and i went for a walk in Inwood in the afternoon to check out the Dutchman's-Breeches wildflowers in the Clove. On the way, I spotted the first of the Troutlilys out on the hillside south of the soccer fields.Lots of Common Violets were also in bloom all around the park. The Dutchman's-breeches were at or just past their peak. Up on the ridge a sapling Flowering Dogwood was in bloom.

Flowering Dogwood 04/23/2017

Cherries, Eastern Redbud and other early spring flowering trees were also out. A pleasant surprise was a Tiger Swallowtail sunning itself on a tree stump.

Tiger Swallowtail 04/23/2017

There were not many birds around, perhaps due to the lateness of the day when we went out and also the slow migration so far. The list of twenty species noted is below.

Canada Goose
Mallard
Ring-billed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Blue Jay
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
American Robin
European Starling
Eastern Towhee
Song Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
House Sparrow

April 20 - Central Park

A wet morning for my AMNH bird walk group. Seven intrepid birders braved the early morning rain to bird the Ramble. The rain did start to let up after an hour or so and by the time the walk ended at 9 am the sun was struggling to break through the heavy clouds. Despite the wet start we didn't do too badly. On the Lake were three Northern Shovelers and an American Coot. A male Wood Duck with some Mallards and Canada Geese added to the waterfowl list.There were a number of Yellow-rumped Warblers and a Palm Warbler on the south side of Turtle Pond. The Point had another concentration of Yellow-rumps, plus another couple of Palms and a Louisiana Waterthrush. Northwest of the Point was Stefan Passlick spotted out first Northern Parula of the year. (Stefan had also spotted the Wood Duck and the coot.) In the same area as the parula we found three Rusty Blackbirds which then moved over to the Swampy Pin Oak area. Another first of the year for us was a Belted Kingfisher along the east side of the Lake. The full list of 35 species is below.

Canada Goose (8, the Lake and Turtle Pond)
Wood Duck (1, male, Turtle pond)
Mallard
Northern Shoveler (3, males, the Lake)
Double-crested Cormorant (7)
Great Egret (2, the Lake and Turtle Pond)
Black-crowned Night-Heron (1, the Lake)
American Coot (1, the Lake)
Ring-billed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Belted Kingfisher (1, the Lake)
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Blue Jay
Black-capped Chickadee (1, the Point)
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (3)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (5)
Hermit Thrush (3)
American Robin
European Starling
Louisiana Waterthrush (1, the Point)
Northern Parula (1, male, sang; nw of the Point)
Palm Warbler (3)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (40)
Eastern Towhee (2)
Swamp Sparrow (1, the Point)
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Rusty Blackbird (3)
Common Grackle
American Goldfinch (2, the feeders)
House Sparrow

April 19 - Central Park

A chilly morning for my Wednesday AMNH bird walk group. Most of the Ramble was pretty quiet. We didn't find any warbler until we went out on the Point. There we found a very dull Pine Warbler, a few Yellow-rumped Warblers and a nice Palm Warbler.

Palm Warbler 04/19/2017

While we were looking at these birds Chris Cooper called that there was an Orange-crowned Warbler. I was able to get a quick look at the bird before it flew. After a bit of searching, a few of the group got another quick view of the bird before it disappeared again.On the way out of the Ramble there were some White Trilliums in bloom just outside one of the closed construction areas.

White Trillium 04/19/2017

The total bird list of 32 species is below.

Canada Goose
Mallard
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Egret
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Red-tailed Hawk
Ring-billed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Blue Jay
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
American Robin
European Starling
Orange-crowned Warbler
Palm Warbler
Pine Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Eastern Towhee
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow

April 18 - Inwood Hill Park

Ann and I went for a quick walk this afternoon in the park. She wanted to see the Dutchman's-Breeches in bloom.

Dutchman's-Breeches 04/18/2017

Across Spuyten Duyvil, Henry Hudson was modeling the namesake breeches.

On the way out of the park, a photogenic Chipping Sparrow was in some blooming Eastern Redbud.

Chipping Sparrow 04/18/2017

April 15 - Inwood Hill Park

It was a lovely, sunny morning before the clouds came in later in the day. The birding was surprisingly quiet considering the pleasant spring weather. However, there were plenty of other natural history subjects of interest to be found. On Tuesday I had found a few Dutchman's-breeches wildflowers in bloom. Now the were large carpets of them in bloom in the Clove. Up on the ridge the first of the Cut-leaf Toothwort was in bloom.

Cut-leaf Toothwort 04/15/2017

Periwinkle and Lesser Celandine was in bloom everywhere. Along the stone wall of the overlook above the Indian Caves the Kenilworth-Ivy was starting to bloom. Here and there Dandelions were out.

On the way back down the Clove I spotted an Eastern Chipmunk, only the second I remember ever seeing in the park.

Eastern Chipmunk 04/15/2017

Along the edge of the mudflats, north of the soccer fields two Red-eared Sliders were sunning themselves.

Red-eared Slider 04/15/2017

Of note among the birds was a calling Pine Warbler on the ridge, first found by James Knox. There was also the first calling Eastern Towhee of the spring that I have heard in the park. My total bird list for the two hour walk is below (27 species).

Canada Goose
Great Egret
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Blue Jay
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren (1, singing)
American Robin
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Pine Warbler (1, singing)
Eastern Towhee (1, calling)
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow (more than in recent morning in the park; lots singing)
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird (1, female)
House Sparrow

April 13 - Lunchtime goodies!

Rather than eating lunch, I hopped on the subway and went down to West 28th Street to see the Cattle Egret that has been hanging out in a small green space on West 28th between 8th and 9th avenues. I was not disappointed. The bird was actively feeding on insects and things in the grass and seemed completely oblivious to the various birders and photographers observing him. Quite a sight for the middle of the city.

Cattle Egret 04/13/2017 - West 28th Street

Since the chase for the egret went so smoothly (and quickly), I decided on the way back uptown, I might as well try for the Red-headed Woodpecker that has spent much of the winter and early spring on the east side of Central Park near 68th Street and Fifth Avenue. Thanks to a birder/photographer who had just seen the bird when I arrived, I also saw this lovely bird in very short order.

Red-headed Woodpecker 04/13/2017 - Central Park

A very successful lunchtime foray!

April 13 - Central Park

A beautiful morning for my Thursday AMNH bird walk group, though a bit cold. Still, it was quite a contrast to last Thursday's fairly wet walk. At Hernshead, on the Lake, we were surprised to see a Double-crested Cormorant sitting up in a tree. The species does nest in trees, but you rarely see one perched in a tree in Central Park.

Double-crested Cormorant 04/13/2017

Flying over the Lake were two Rough-winged Swallows, the first we have seen this year, though the species has been seen by others in the last few days. One of the birdiest areas was the Point where we saw our first Black-and-white Warbler of the spring, along with a Palm Warbler, both kinglets and a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher.

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 04/13/2017

In total we had forty species for the two hour walk.

Canada Goose
Mallard
Ruddy Duck (2 males on Lake)
Double-crested Cormorant
Black-crowned Night-Heron (1, the Point)
Red-tailed Hawk
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Blue Jay
American Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow (2, the Lake)
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (1, the Point)
Golden-crowned Kinglet (1, the Point)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Hermit Thrush
American Robin
European Starling
Louisiana Waterthrush (1, Upper Lobe)
Black-and-white Warbler (1, the Point)
Pine Warbler (1, Turtle Pond - seen by Stefan Passlick and some of the group)
Palm Warbler (1, the Point)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (2, the Point)
Eastern Towhee
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird (1, female, the feeders)
House Finch (2, the feeders)
American Goldfinch (8, the feeders)
House Sparrow

An early April Summer Tanager

On my April 12 AMNH Central Park bird walk, one of my regulars, Diane George, asked me if I could identify a bird she had photographed on Long Island the previous week. She showed me some pictures on her smartphone taken on Friday, April 7 in Kings Park, Long Island. Unfortunately, I couldn't be sure of what the bird was from looking at the pictures on the small screen of her phone. I asked her to email them to me so I could get a better view on my computer in the office. She did later in the day and I was able to identify the bird as a Summer Tanager!. It is not a record early date for the species locally, but it is very early and the first that I have heard of in the NYC area this spring. A couple of the pictures are below.

Summer Tanager 04/07/2017 ph. by Diane George

Summer Tanager 04/07/2017 ph. by Diane George

April 12 - Central Park

My Wednesday AMNH bird walk group had another nice morning in the Ramble. Nothing too exciting, but a number of early spring migrants. It was not a bird, but a large Bull Frog, spotted by Dave Barrett on the shore of the Lake at  Hernshead was fun. Also at Hernshead were a number of Palm Wablers and a couple of Yellow-rumped Warblers. In the pines west of Belvedere Castle was a bright yellow Pine Warbler with a few more dull individuals along the south side of Turtle Pond. A Brown Thrasher in the Maintenance Meadow was our first of the year and I spotted a lone Rusty Blackbird flying over while we were in the meadow. On the way out a nice male Eastern Towhee provided nice views east of the Upper Lobe. The full list of 40 species follows.

Canada Goose (15)
Mallard
Northern Shoveler (6, The Lake)
Ruddy Duck (6, the Lake; all males, none in breeding plumage)
Double-crested Cormorant (6)
Black-crowned Night-Heron (1, the Lake)
Red-tailed Hawk (1)
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (2)
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Blue Jay
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (3)
Hermit Thrush (4)
American Robin
Brown Thrasher (1)
European Starling
Palm Warbler (6)
Pine Warbler (4)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (2)
Eastern Towhee (1, male)
Chipping Sparrow (6)
Song Sparrow (1)
Swamp Sparrow (1)
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco (1)
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Rusty Blackbird (1)
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird (1, Belvedere)
House Finch (2, feeders)
American Goldfinch (8, feeders)
House Sparrow

April 11 - Inwood Hill Park

Another beautiful morning in Inwood Hill Park. Blue skies and warm temperatures, but still not a lot of birds. The female Red-breasted Merganser was once again in the bay north of the soccer fields.

Red-breasted Merganser 04/11/2017

I wondered if the bird was injured, but later when I was coming back down from the ridge, I watched it fly out of the bay and then found it actively feeding by Muscota Marsh.

On the east side of the Clove, the Dutchman's-Breeches are just starting to bloom.

Dutchman's-Breeches 04/11/2017

Birding remains relatively quiet up on the ridge, but after coming back down, I found a Field Sparrow feeding on the soccer fields - the first I have seen here this year.

Field Sparrow 04/11/2017

In total I noted 32 species in just over two hours.

Canada Goose
Mallard
Red-breasted Merganser
Double-crested Cormorant
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
Hermit Thrush
American Robin
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Field Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
House Finch
House Sparrow

April 10 - Inwood Hill Park

Since it was such a lovely spring morning, I went into the park this morning for a couple of hours. The weather was nice, but it was still relatively quiet birding. The lingering female Red-breasted Merganser continues north of the soccer fields at the north end of the park.

Red-breasted Merganser female 04/10/2017

Singing White-throated Sparrows are still in the Clove and on the ridge and a few Dark-eyed Juncos can still be found in spots. The only new bird for the spring that I came across was Hermit Thrush with two encountered on the ridge. On the way back out a cooperative Ruby-crowned Kinglet, practically begged me to take its picture.

Ruby-crowned Kinglet 04/10/2017

My final tally was 29 species in two hours.

Canada Goose
Red-breasted Merganser
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Hermit Thrush
American Robin
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
House Sparrow

April 7 - Inwood Hill Park

I went for a short walk up onto the ridge in Inwood Hill Park this morning. The forecast was for sunny skies, but the weather was actually somewhat gray and chilly. Nevertheless, in under two hours I found 32 species. There was the expected singing White-throated Sparrows and a number of Dark-eyed Juncos in the Clove. The best bird was an adult Bald Eagle soaring over the ridge, as seen from the overlook above the Hudson. This bird was spotted first by Nadir Souirgi who I encountered at the overlook. On the way back down we came across a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, the first I have seen in the park this spring. The weather forecasts call for steadily warming temperatures over the next four days, so we should get a real pulse of migrants coming through.

This morning's list is below.

Brant (7 flying south over the river. A bit of a surprise.)
Canada Goose
Mallard
Bald Eagle (1, adult)
Red-tailed Hawk
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
Fish Crow (1, heard)
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren (singing)
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (1)
American Robin
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
House Sparrow

April 6 - Central Park

It was a cold, damp and dreary morning for my Thursday AMNH Central Park bird walk group. Four hardy souls braved the weather. The rain held off (mostly), with some periodic drizzle. We managed to squeeze out 34 species from 7 – 9 am.

Canada Goose (6)
Mallard (8)
Northern Shoveler (25, fewer than yesterday, but still numbers on the Lake and Turtle Pond)
Ruddy Duck (1, the Lake again)
Double-crested Cormorant (8)
Great Egret (1, Turtle Pond)
Black-crowned Night-Heron (2, Turtle Pond)
Red-tailed Hawk (1)
Herring Gull (1)
Rock Pigeon (10)
Mourning Dove (2)
Red-bellied Woodpecker (2)
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (1, by the Rustic Pavilion)
Downy Woodpecker (1)
Eastern Phoebe (1, south side Turtle Pond)
Blue Jay (10)
Black-capped Chickadee (6)
Tufted Titmouse (12)
White-breasted Nuthatch (5)
Brown Creeper (1, near feeders)
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (1, the Point)
Golden-crowned Kinglet (2)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (3)
American Robin (12)
European Starling (20)
Chipping Sparrow (1, the feeders)
Fox Sparrow (2, the feeders)
White-throated Sparrow (30)
Northern Cardinal (8)
Red-winged Blackbird (2)
Common Grackle (2)
House Finch (1)
American Goldfinch (6, the feeders)
House Sparrow (40)

April 5 - Central Park

This morning was the first bird walk of the spring season for my Wednesday morning AMNH group. At 7:00 am it was foggy with a low overcast. Just before I arrived most of the group had a Brown Creeper at our regular meeting place on Central Park West. At Hernshead some of the group spotted a Winter Wren moving in the low trees along the shoreline - this was probably the best bird of the morning, though unfortunately, not everyone saw it before it pulled a disappearing act the way Winter Wrens often do. By the time we got up to the Belvedere Castle the sun was starting to break through and it turned into a lovely morning. On the south side of Turtle Pond Lenore Swenson spotted a bright yellow Pine Warbler which everyone got on. In the Maintenance Meadow, a Palm Warbler was our second warbler of the morning. Due to maintenance work a large part of the center of the Ramble, including the Azalea Pond and almost all of the Gill was fenced off and inaccessible. Despite the problems we had a very nice two hours finding a total of 40 species, including the Brown Creeper before the walk officially started and a Red-tailed Hawk over Central Park West seen by Lenore and myself as we were leaving. The full list is below.

A Fox Sparrow in the fog below the Belvedere Castle.

Bloodroot in bloom east of the Upper Lobe.

Canada Goose (8)
Mallard
Northern Shoveler (35)
Hooded Merganser (pair on Turtle Pond)
Ruddy Duck (1, winter male on the Lake)
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Egret (1, Turtle Pond)
Black-crowned Night-Heron (1, Turtle Pond)
Red-tailed Hawk (1)
Herring Gull (overhead)
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker (6)
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (1, below Belvedere)
Downy Woodpecker (2)
Northern Flicker (6)
Eastern Phoebe (6, mainly south side of Turtle Pond)
Blue Jay
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse (10)
White-breasted Nuthatch (6)
Brown Creeper (1)
Winter Wren (1)
Golden-crowned Kinglet (1, below Belvedere)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (1, south side of Turtle Pond)
American Robin
European Starling
Palm Warbler (1, Maintenance Meadow)
Pine Warbler (1, south side of Turtle Pond)
Chipping Sparrow (1)
Fox Sparrow (5)
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow (1, Maintenance Meadow)
White-throated Sparrow (everywhere)
Dark-eyed Junco (2, Maintenance Meadow)
Northern Cardinal
Rusty Blackbird (3, island in Turtle Pond)
Common Grackle
American Goldfinch (1, feeders)
House Sparrow

April 3 - Inwood Hill Park

I went into Inwood Hill Park for a couple of hours on Monday. it was a lovely spring morning. No real surprises with some winter holdovers and spring arrivals. One of the holdovers was a female Red-breasted Merganser in the bay north of the soccer fields at the north end of the park. We get this species with some regularity in the winter, but not so much this late into the spring. One spring arrival that there were lots of up in the woods on the ridge were Eastern Phoebes. There must have been at least 20 around.

Eastern Phoebe 04/03/2017 Inwood Hill Park

Besides birds I saw a couple of early spring butterflies: a Spring Azure and a Mourning Cloak, both up on the ridge by the wall over the Indian caves. A number of flowers were also in bloom. Daffodils were out, particularly in the lower Clove. Near the top of the Clove path there were a few lingering Snowdrops, well past their prime. Periwinkles were in bloom in a number of places and Forsythia was in bloom at the top of the Clove. On the edge of the Overlook Meadow a few Lesser Celandine were out.

The full bird list of 31 species is below.

Canada Goose
Mallard
Red-breasted Merganser
Red-tailed Hawk
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglet
American Robin
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Fox Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
House Finch
House Sparrow