Inwood Hill Park - Mar 21, 2014 - first full day of spring

The first full day of spring was a beautiful, sunny day, but still a bit on the chilly side. I got into the park twice - once in the morning between about 8:00 and 10:00 am and again in the late afternoon. The Snowdrops at the top of The Clove are probably at or even a bit past their peak.

Snowdrops                                                                                                                                                 © Joseph DiCostanzo

My total bird list for the day was 29 species with no real surprises, but a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker was my first for the year. It might be a migrant, but more likely it wintered in the park and I just hadn't run into it yet this spring. The full list follows:

Canada Goose                                                               Blue Jay
American Black Duck                                                      Tufted Titmouse
Mallard                                                                           White-breasted Nuthatch
Red-breasted Merganser                                                 Brown Creeper
Cooper's Hawk                                                               Carolina Wren
Red-tailed Hawk                                                             American Robin
Ring-billed Gull                                                               Northern Mockingbird
Herring Gull                                                                    European Starling
Great Black-backed Gull                                                 Song Sparrow
Rock Pigeon                                                                  White-throated Sparrow
Mourning Dove                                                               Dark-eyed Junco
Red-bellied Woodpecker                                                 Northern Cardinal
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker                                                Common Grackle
Downy Woodpecker                                                        House Sparrow 
Hairy Woodpecker

Northern Mockingbird                                                                                                                             © Joseph DiCostanzo