Worthy of mention to this list, unless I missed a report here, is the NY harbor (from Staten Island / Richmond County, NY) Brown BOOBY sighting with video taken by J. Ramirez-Garofalo, on Tuesday mid-morning, Oct. 2nd - see: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S48896928
- - Not NY state, but not too far away, a ROCK Wren is among the latest of western passerine rarities to turn up in the northeast, this in the Philadelphia area of Pennsylvania & seen by many on Oct. 3rd & 4th. - - In New York County - & on Governor’s Island, the 200th species of bird documented for that particular location came Sunday, Sept. 30th - Pectoral Sandpiper, nicely photo’d by Cathy Weiner. -- Manhattan - Mon.-Thursday, 1-4th Oct. 2018: Monday, 10/1 - A small sign of the new month, 8 Ruddy Ducks on the Central Park reservoir; many Chimney Swifts in various areas of Manhattan (also massing in large flocks around the nearby region); Blackpoll Warblers are among the migrant species showing up in some of the smaller parks & greenspaces around Manhattan. Tues., 10/2 - Red-headed Woodpecker, seen by the leader & part of the group for A.M.N.H. bird-walk; a fly-over in early morning. Yellow-billed Cuckoo was found as was a rather late Yellow-throated Vireo (these also continuing the next day), these two migrants noted on the walk led for the Linnaean Society of New York by Richard Leiberman, & with many other obs. A Blue Jay flight in good numbers continued apace with 400+ trying to get over the high bldgs. near C.P. South at noon, and swirling about the s. end of Central Park then eventually most going SW instead of due south, which is more the heading they’d eventually need. Also, 175+ going south over Ft. Tryon Park even later, this all on a day with winds from the southwest. Still present in Central Park alone were these warblers: Nashville, Northern Parula (multiple; not many), Magnolia (multiple; not many), Black-throated Blue, Yellow-rumped [Myrtle], Black-throated Green (multiple; not many), Pine, Palm (multiple, not that many - & of both forms), Blackpoll (multiple, not that many), Black-and-white Warbler[s], plus American Redstart, Ovenbird, Northern Waterthrush (at least 2), & Common Yellowthroat - 14 species, & perhaps a few other late stragglers. A slight uptick in Yellow-bellied Sapsucker numbers; whilst fewer of Flickers. A very slight uptick in Chipping & White-throated Sparrow no’s. but still not the big arrivals. While Swainson’s was still the most commonly seen of migrant thrushes, some Gray-cheeked Thrush also have been observed; & a few reports of Hermit Thrush. A few N. Shovelers appeared (again) in Central, & were continuing the next day. Wed., 10/3 - A front came through overnight rather late, after some showers passed mainly north of NYC late the previous day. Despite a warm day, the wind from the N/NW, & a modest showing of raptors including several Bald Eagles & both Sharp-shinned & Cooper’s Hawks. The strong Blue Jay movements of late continued, with many hundreds, perhaps over 1,000, going by as seen from several vantage points thru the day. A moderately late Blue-gray Gnatcatcher was at the n.w. side of the Great Lawn. An Indigo Bunting was at the N. end’s “knoll”, and another Indigo Bunting was seen in Riverside Park near day’s end. A walk around the reservoir revealed a Lincoln’s Sparrow skulking in plantings on the north outer permiter. A single Ruddy Duck was at the reservoir’s eastern portion. There were still a number of E. Wood-Pewees, some of the many E. Phoebes apparently having moved on. Small parks & green-spaces again had some migrants, although not great numbers of them. A getting-late-now Common Nighthawk was reported by J. Wooten at around 5 p.m. from Central Park. Thursday, 10/4 - Some migration the previous night, & at least a modest early-morning showing at the n. end of Central Park, from its highest point, with 14 Y.-s. Flickers, 3 E. Phoebes, 2 R.-e. Vireos, 50+ Blue Jays, 2 R.-b. Nuthatches, 2 Baltimore Orioles, 8 Common Grackles, & 2 Purple Finches, as well as 15+ individual warblers including a few recognized in flight as either Palm or Yellow-rumped Warblers. Also in the air in the 15-minute period just as sun was rising were 22+ Ch. Swifts. In the n. woods were 3 Brown Thrashers, 4 Swainson’s Thrushes, 2 Scarlet Tanagers, and in various areas in the n. end were 6 N. Parulas, 1 Nashville, 2 Black-throated Green, 3 Magnolia, 1 Blackpoll, & 6+ Myrtle Warblers, plus 2 Ovenbirds & 4 or 5 Common Yellowthroats. A modest movement of these species seemed to have occurred here: White-breasted Nuthatch, Black-capped Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, & some sparrows including White-throated & Savannah, as well as E. Towhee. Additionally, are reports of Black-and-white Warbler from a number of smaller parks. There also may have been some movement by Red-bellied Woodpecker, based on just a few of my sightings where I don’t know them to be resident, & a few reports. I visited Governor’s Island at mid-day, via the 8-minute boat ride from the southern tip Manhattan, & while I was more focused there on insect-observing (esp. butterflies, these including uncommon for this county Variergated Fritillary, and Common Checkered-Skipper each in the multiple, & 9 other spp.), there were some migrants around. None of the birds I noticed were remarkable, but several Blackpolls in the farthest south (picnic point) area of trees were interesting, there mixing with Palm & Yellow-rumped Warblers & a few sparrow species. In the Nolan Park area, closer to the ferry dock, were some other migranst such as N. Parula & Magnolia Warbler, as well as many flickers, and Y-b. Sapsuckers; a few Red-breasted Nuthatches were also in several locations on the island, as were Common Yellowthroats. I checked out the shore rocks & some puddles, but did not come up with birds of note in the quick scanning of these areas. A later return to Central Park, & a look in part of Riverside Park at day’s end, were just modestly productive for a few more migrants. - - - - - "Have we fallen into a mesmerized state that makes us accept as inevitable that which is inferior or detrimental, as though having lost the will or the vision to demand that which is good?” - Rachel Carson (1907-1964; marine biologist, conservationist, author whose books include ‘Silent Spring’. Sir David Attenborough has remarked that that book may have had an effect on science second only to Charles Darwin’s “On the Origin of Species”.) Good birding, Tom Fiore manhattan -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01 Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
