New York County (in N.Y. City), including Manhattan, Randall’s, and Governors
Island[s]
Saturday, Oct. 2nd -
On Governors Island, a Nelson’s Sparrow, Yellow-breasted Chat, lingering
female-plumaged Blue Grosbeak, and at least 2 ('late-ish’) Bobolinks were found
near Fort Jay, some birds possibly seen in the morning only, while the Blue
Grosbeak (in particular) was seen through the day by multiple observers, some
arriving later on. (Thanks to Annie Barry for many of the Sat. reports from
Governors Island, with others also reporting later on). Sparrow diversity
generally was quite good there over the day on Sunday. One aspect of the
current rules for visits by the general public to Governors Island which has
been in place since it opened to the public, is that the earliest ferry boats
arriving there come just after 10 a.m. each day, and it would be great to see
that change to earlier public-hours, along with the new opening-up of the
island all-year-round to the public; many birders in particular would enjoy
being able to come and visit there a lot earlier (than 10 a.m.) on any given
day, most especially in migration seasons.
At Randall’s Island, and beginning quite early on Sunday, a nice diversity of
Sparrows were among the highlights, those included Grasshopper, Vesper,
Nelson’s and various more-regular and numerous species of sparrows, as well as
American Pipit (probably the first-of-season for *the county*, at least by
reports, although all of these latter species have been noted around the
region, esp. just recently). There were also many many more migrants &/or
visiting species seen on Randall’s by a number of observers, with
early-arriving birders (A. Cunningham, D. Aronov, J. Keane) finding many of the
noted specials & getting the word out, too - thanks to them and all later
observers and reporters! Also seen were (again) up to three Yellow-crowned
Night-Herons on Randall’s Island, as well as Black-crowned Night-Herons, Great
Egret, and many many other migrants, also seen -as was, in particular the
lingering Vesper Sparrow- by many obs. arriving there through the day on
Saturday.
At least two well-described and photographed (and rather late now) Mourning
Warblers were seen in Manhattan, one near the “World Trade Center memorial”
area, and one at the north end of Central Park, on Saturday, 10/2. The latter
was seen by multiple observers. This species is typically beginning to move
south from breeding areas in mid-Aug. (occasionally earlier) and can be
somewhat numerous (if shy & reclusive by nature & habit, thus regularly
under-reported almost everywhere it passes & in all seasons, but more so in
“fall” season, when not likely at all to be singing) in later August & the
first week or so of Sept. in most years. [N.B. - birds suspected of, or
thought to be ‘Mourning’, in October & onward into winter should be
closely-scrutinized in the eastern U.S. for the possibility of vagrant
MacGillivray’s Warbler, a species that is very rare-but-regular in the east,
including in N.Y. City, mostly found late or even very late in the “fall”
season here, if detected!]
A Connecticut Warbler was reported, with good details, near The Pool in Central
Park’s n. end on Saturday, with at least several observers. Among all the many
warbler species being seen around the county on Saturday, Blackpoll Warbler was
again very widespread and in some locations, the most-numerous of all, although
that varied a lot by location, some sites seeing more of a few of the other
fairly-common-now of the warbler species, such as Myrtle / Yellow-rumped,
and/or Palm Warbler, and/or Common Yellowthoat, for 3 examples. In a few
locations, even Magnolia was seen as the more-common of the warblers on Sunday;
a lot of variability from one site to another (and that can happen within even
just short distances in some cases).
The following 23 species of American Warblers were seen, by many, many
observers all through the day in N.Y. County - and for Saturday, 10/2, ALL of
these 23 species were seen in Central Park with its esp. high numbers of quiet
and patient observers out & about through the day there:
Connecticut Warbler (one, at Central Park)
Mourning Warbler (at least 2, now-quite-late individuals, as noted above, one
in lower Manhattan and one at Central Park, each well-documented)
Tennessee Warbler (multiple)
Nashville Warbler (multiple)
Northern Parula (multiple)
Yellow Warbler (multiple)
Chestnut-sided Warbler (scant, as would be expected by this date)
Magnolia Warbler (many in some particular locations)
Cape May Warbler (multiple)
Black-throated Blue Warbler (multiple)
Myrtle/Yellow-rumped Warbler (many in many locations)
Black-throated Green Warbler (multiple)
Pine Warbler (multiple)
Prairie Warbler (multiple, but not many)
Palm Warbler (many in many locations)
Bay-breasted Warbler (multiple, but far-fewer than the next species in list)
Blackpoll Warbler (many in many locations)
Black-and-white Warbler (multiple)
American Redstart (multiple)
Ovenbird (multiple)
Northern Waterthrush (multiple, but not many)
Common Yellowthroat (many in many locations)
Wilson's Warbler (multiple, but not many)
None of the above species seen Saturday, Oct. 2nd were single-observer-only
sightings.
Other species seen in N.Y. County on Saturday also included (but were hardly
limited to) the following:
Canada Goose
Wood Duck (Central Park)
Gadwall
American Black Duck
Mallard
Northern Shoveler (multiple, but not that many)
Ruddy Duck (multiple, but not that many)
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
American Coot (at least 1 continued in Central Park)
Turkey Vulture (multiple, but not that many for the date as this is a good
month for the species migration)
Killdeer (in favored locations)
Spotted Sandpiper (now few)
Laughing Gull (multiple, but not that many)
Ring-billed Gull
[American] Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
American Kestrel
Merlin
Peregrine Falcon
['feral'] Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Yellow-billed Cuckoo (several including at least one on Governors Island, as
well as in Central Park, where seen by many)
Chimney Swift (at times, in flocks of 80-100+, also in lower numbers seen in
many locations)
Ruby-throated Hummingbird (still about in fairly low numbers now)
Belted Kingfisher (multiple, but not that many)
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (many, in many locations)
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Yellow-shafted Flicker (multiple)
Eastern Wood-Pewee (multiple, but not as many as in previous week)
Empidonax [genus] Flycatcher (at least a few still lingering; these also need
to be scrutinized as October, and autumn continue)
Eastern Phoebe (common in many locations)
Blue-headed Vireo (multiple)
Warbling Vireo (getting late)
*Philadelphia Vireo* (a very few reports, but some with no comment at all;
while annual in fall-season, this is not a commonly-identified species)
Red-eyed Vireo (multiple)
Blue Jay (numerous in some locations, some still in morning-movements)
Common Raven (at multiple locations, and including at Governors Island)
American Crow
Fish Crow
Tree Swallow (rather few by now for the county)
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch (multiple, with some being seen in slightly unexpected
locations)
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper (multiple)
Carolina Wren
House Wren
Winter Wren (multiple)
Golden-crowned Kinglet (still quite numerous in some locations, although
‘fall-outs’ were reduced; some in unexpected locations)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (quite numerous in many locations, and some turning up in
a few odd, unexpected locations)
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (getting quite late; this was also noted on Oct. 1st in
same area, n. end of Central Park; not yet unprecedently late there)
Veery (still being reported from a very few locations, & should if possible be
photographed or video-recorded; getting quite late for the species in this
region)
Gray-cheeked Thrush (multiple; some are not really distinguished from the
possibility of a Bicknell's Thrush which also are moving through lately in the
area)
Swainson's Thrush (multiple, now reduced from their Sept. numbers)
Hermit Thrush (multiple)
Wood Thrush (few but still lingering - this species has some rare but
well-documented mid-winter records in N.Y. City including Manhattan)
American Robin
Gray Catbird (many)
Northern Mockingbird
Brown Thrasher (multiple)
Cedar Waxwing (multiple)
Scarlet Tanager (multiple, in multiple locations)
Eastern Towhee
Slate-colored Junco (multiple)
Chipping Sparrow (multiple)
Field Sparrow (multiple)
Savannah Sparrow (multiple)
Song Sparrow (multiple)
Lincoln's Sparrow (multiple)
Swamp Sparrow (multiple)
White-throated Sparrow (becoming nearly-common in many areas by now; this is a
regularly-wintering, as well as scarce-summering non-breeding species in N.Y.
City)
White-crowned Sparrow (multiple)
(with the 3 rarer sparrows as noted above in this report from Randall’s Island,
a rather good diversity of sparrows now being found, with more sure to be in
this month)
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak (multiple)
Indigo Bunting (multiple)
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Baltimore Oriole (few)
- & surely some additional species found for the day on Saturday.
...
Monarchs and a variety of other butterflies, and many other insects continued
to be seen, in the mild (afternoon) weather on Saturday.
Good birding to all,
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/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/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/
--
