May 16 - Inwood Hill Park - Another great day

Another great birding day in Inwood. Once again I started before 6:30 am. Also, once again I met up with Danny Karlson, Hilary Russ, and Diane Schenker soon after entering the park and the four of us social distance birding all morning, sometime joined by other birders.

Things started off well with a singing Marsh Wren in a small patch of reeds north of the soccer fields. It was reported a short time earlier by Nathan O'Reilly. This was the second Marsh Wren in the park in the last week. I tallied 70 species again today, the same as yesterday. I actually left the park with 69 species on my list, but in the afternoon, I heard a House Finch from my apartment window. I picked up two new species for my spring bird list: Yellow-billed Cuckoo and Yellow-bellied Flycatcher bringing my April/May total for the park to 116 species. Today, flycatchers were in in numbers and Swainson's Thrushes seemed to be everywhere.

Though this is probably the peak of spring migration many birds have already settled down and started nesting.In the last week I have seen Canada Geese, Mallards, American Robins, and Starlings with young.Barn Swallows are apparently nesting under the Columbia University dock in the Muscota Marsh area. I have seen both Orchard and Baltimore oriole engages in nest building. Diane tells me the Red-tailed Hawks have young in their nest, but she has been unable to see how many. Today Tree Swallows were mating on a tree snag in the northwest corner of the soccer fields.

The full list is below.

Canada Goose 2
Mallard 6
Rock Pigeon 10
Mourning Dove 4
Yellow-billed Cuckoo 1
Chimney Swift 4
Least Sandpiper 2
Ring-billed Gull 2
Herring Gull 2
Double-crested Cormorant 1
Great Egret 1
Turkey Vulture 1
Red-tailed Hawk 2
Red-bellied Woodpecker 4
Downy Woodpecker 3
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 2
Eastern Wood-Pewee 1
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher 1
Least Flycatcher 2 - also at least four unidentified "empids" 
Great Crested Flycatcher 2
Eastern Kingbird 2
Yellow-throated Vireo 1 
Warbling Vireo 6
Red-eyed Vireo 3
Blue Jay 10
Fish Crow 1
Tree Swallow 2

Barn Swallow 3
White-breasted Nuthatch 3
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 1
House Wren 3
Marsh Wren 1 
Carolina Wren 4
European Starling 10
Gray Catbird 10
Northern Mockingbird 1
Veery 2
Swainson's Thrush 20

Wood Thrush 4
American Robin 24

House Sparrow 12
House Finch 1
American Goldfinch 2
Song Sparrow 4
Eastern Towhee 3
Orchard Oriole 2
Baltimore Oriole 11
Red-winged Blackbird 4
Brown-headed Cowbird 1
Common Grackle 4
Ovenbird 3
Northern Waterthrush 1
Black-and-white Warbler 8
Common Yellowthroat 2
American Redstart 6
Northern Parula 6
Magnolia Warbler 1
Bay-breasted Warbler 5
Blackburnian Warbler 3
Yellow Warbler 2
Chestnut-sided Warbler 5
Blackpoll Warbler 5
Black-throated Blue Warbler 4
Black-throated Green Warbler 1
Canada Warbler 1
Wilson's Warbler 1
Scarlet Tanager 1
Northern Cardinal 4
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 1