Central Park Fri-Sat-Sun 17th-19th, 21 warbler species

With migration now moving along quickly I made what is likely to be my last spring migration CPK trip of 2013 as a Friday to Sunday triple.  Thursday was in fact the biggest migration day, but with birds left over on both Saturday and Sunday even if the weather on Sunday was quite wet.

Best birds: Olive-sided Flycatcher (Saturday), Black-billed Cuckoo (Friday), Tennessee Warblers (Sat, Sun: singing), a very late Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, late Prairie Warbler (Sat, Sun: singing).  The new first-of-year birds included me finally catching up with Cedar Waxwings.  I still maintained a perfect-miss record on Mourning and Kentucky, however.

On Monday morning, although a work day, migration was still humming along based on three warbler species (Blackpoll, Magnolia, Redstart) singing in my back yard, plus Red-eyed Vireo.




Double-crested Cormorant
Spotted Sandpiper (Sat)
Black-billed Cuckoo (Fri)
Chimney Swift
Northern Flicker
Cedar Waxwing
Olive-sided Flycatcher (Sat)
Least Flycatcher
Blue-headed Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Barn Swallow
House Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (Sat)
Veery
Gray-cheeked Thrush (Sun)
Swainson's Thrush
Hermit Thrush
Wood Thrush
Cedar Waxwing
Tennessee Warbler (Sat, Sun)
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Cape May Warbler (Fri, Sat)
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler (Fri, Sat)
Prairie Warbler (Sat, Sun)
Bay-breasted Warbler (Fri, Sat)
Blackpoll Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
American Redstart
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler (Sat)
Wilson's Warbler
Canada Warbler
Scarlet Tanager
White-crowned Sparrow (Fri)
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Baltimore Oriole

Central Park Sat/Sun (11th/12th): 21 warbler species + flycatchers + thrushes

When delayed, spring migration has a predictable way to reassert itself.  In this case the even more compressed migration timeframe saw a noticeable transition in species mix on successive days, as numbers dropped after the big wave day on Friday.

Scarce to non-existant on Friday, Flycatchers and Thrushes turned up Saturday and Sunday.  It was unusual to get first-of-year Least Flycatcher and Eastern Wood-Pewee on the same day, but multiples of the former were seen both days along with Great Cresteds and Eastern Kingbirds (reports from elsewhere suggested a big flight of Eastern Kingbirds).   "Earlier" warbler species were supplemented by later spring species - I saw my first Blackpoll of the year on Friday, and had my first female Blackpoll on Sunday, as Yellow-rumped showed a rapid fall-off in numbers and I had 3 Wilson's on Sunday - they're rarely numerous in the park.

The stars of the show were a cooperative Blackburnian Warbler on Saturday morning, a male Prothonotary Warbler on Sunday afternoon, and I found a Marsh Wren while trying to reacquire the Prothonotary ahead of the storm front on Saturday.  The Prothonotary was seen on Turtle Pond on Sunday morning but then flew north - illustrating the act of faith of migrating warblers since it doesn't know the Reservoir or the Loch is ahead of it when it set off over the Great Lawn.

I came up with an aggregated total of 21 warblers for Sat-Sun and 23 for the Fri-Sun "triple".  Migration still remains, for example few Gray-cheeked Thrushes have been reported and the Eastern Wood-Pewees were silent and as singles, but the majority of the marked migration lag has been removed with the major push over the last few days.  Remains to be seen if we're going to pick up many sparrows this year, with no Lincoln's so far and a single Field and Swamp on Sunday.


Green Heron
Spotted Sandpiper
Chimney Swift
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Least Flycatcher
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
Blue-headed Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Black-capped Chickadee
Marsh Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Veery
Swainson's Thrush
Hermit Thrush
Wood Thrush
Gray Catbird
Nashville Warbler
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Cape May Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Palm Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
American Redstart
Prothonotary Warbler
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Canada Warbler
Scarlet Tanager
Eastern Towhee
Field Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Baltimore Oriole

Central Park: April 27th/28th

Saturday was slow going with low numbers but a significant uptick in diversity compared to Thursday, the larger volume day.  Notable were first-of-year (for me) Black-throated Green Warbler and an Eastern Kingbird and an especially elusive Hooded Warbler that I finally caught up with at the Tupelo. In contrast to Thursday there were actually some thrushes around, all Hermits.  Nevertheless the going was relatively slow and I managed only 8 warbler species.  A roosting Red Bat was pointed out to me - the first time I've actually seen one roosting in the park although we sometimes encounter daytime bats (perhaps sick ones).

Sunday held the promise of better winds, and migration had a bit more volume but it didn't quite constitute a "good" day.  Highlights were new American Redstart, new Chestnut-sided Warbler, a Worm-eating Warbler and a Great Crested Flycatcher.  Notable by its absence was Kentucky Warbler - seen in Prospect Park and should be pretty much the perfect time for one.   Numbers were up but it manifested as much as more Black-and-whites or Ruby-crowned Kinglets and I netted only one more warbler species on the Sunday than the Saturday.

Saturday:

Gadwall
Chimney Swift
Northern Flicker
Eastern Kingbird
Blue-headed Vireo
Brown Creeper
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Hermit Thrush
Gray Catbird
Northern Parula
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Palm Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
Northern Waterthrush
Louisiana Waterthrush
Hooded Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow

Sunday:

Chimney Swift

Hairy Woodpecker

Northern Flicker

Great Crested Flycatcher

Blue-headed Vireo

Warbling Vireo (heard)

Red-breasted Nuthatch

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

Hermit Thrush

Wood Thrush (heard)

Gray Catbird

Northern Parula

Yellow Warbler

Chestnut-sided Warbler

Black-throated Blue Warbler

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Black-and-white Warbler

American Redstart

Worm-eating Warbler

Ovenbird

Eastern Towhee

Swamp Sparrow

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

4/25 Central Park: 11 warbler species

In what felt like a "right on time" migration day I managed to pick the weather right and chose the cooler of the two days to visit the park based on wind direction (Weds was 75 degrees but the previous night had northerlies).  I had 4 Chimney Swifts the night before over my house (c.NJ) and on the northbound train at dawn there were another four over Linden.

The initial impression from Strawberry Fields was that it was quiet, albeit quiet with a lot of Chipping Sparrows, a singing Yellow Warbler and a Northern Parula.  I encountered some Chipping Sparrow flocks in the Ramble and elsewhere that suggested a big day for them.  In contrast only the one lingering female Dark-eyed Junco.  Hernshead was rather more active with two Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, a few Yellow-rumped Warblers and Palm Warblers.  A distant waterthrush seemed Northern-ish and there were one or two Northerns at the Upper Lobe.  I was reluctant to call the waterthrush at the Triplets Bridge a Louisiana at the time, but on my way out of the park caught up with Louisiana Waterthrush south of Hernshead.  That's my first one for the year.

In the Ramble there were a lot of Palm Warblers exploring the now more open areas where many trees came down in Hurricane Sandy: the swampy ex-Pin Oak area and the Summer House.  Many Eastern (yellow) Palms in that area, and overall I saw perhaps as many as 30 throughout the park - rather a contrast to the Palms I saw in Florida recently which were all of the drab Western subspecies.  Several Ruby-crowned Kinglets, more Gnatcatchers, a few Blue-headed Vireos, but only one Hermit Thrush and zero Phoebes.  The Black-and-white Warblers had as many females as males - a strange thing for their first big movement in the park.  However the best two warblers for the day were a male Prairie Warbler and a male Hooded Warbler, the latter covering ground rapidly near the Summer House and Swampy Pin Oak.

The final interesting birds for the day were a brief glimpse of Ovenbird near Azalea Pond and a male Baltimore Oriole at Maintenance Field.



Red-tailed Hawk
Northern Flicker
Blue-headed Vireo (3+)
Barn Swallow
Brown Creeper
Carolina Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (5+)
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (5+)
Hermit Thrush
Northern Parula (1)
Yellow Warbler (2)
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Pine Warbler (1 first spring female)
Prairie Warbler (1)
Palm Warbler (30+)
Black-and-white Warbler (5)
Ovenbird (1)
Northern Waterthrush (2)
Louisiana Waterthrush (1)
Hooded Warbler (1)
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco (1)
Baltimore Oriole

Strong migration for early April, Central Park

Rarely do I go into Central Park on a workday morning in April, much less on April NINTH, but the forecast for today was for a second day of unseasonable heat - into the high 70's and perhaps 80's, bringing with it hopes of a strong migration showing.

Early April means much lower diversity than early May, but there were about as many individuals of each of the migrant species as I remember seeing this early on in spring migration.  I had double digits of both Kinglets and Hermit Thrushes, Flickers were bordering on abundant, but the date being what it was I had only one warbler species - three Palm Warblers - having missed the Louisiana Waterthrush.  Best bird for the day was a single Rusty Blackbird in fully black plumage, spending time in the Upper Lobe with the Wood Duck pair.  Two Winter Wrens were also a decent find.  Fox Sparrows, Chipping Sparrows, Eastern Towhees and a singles of Swamp and Field Sparrow were the sparrow migrants of note, with also an uptick of Song Sparrows.

In a couple of weeks this sort of pro-migration weather would be expected to carpet the park with Yellow-rumped Warblers.


Wood Duck
Gadwall
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Black-capped Chickadee
Brown Creeper
Carolina Wren
Winter Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Hermit Thrush
Palm Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Fox Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Rusty Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
American Goldfinch

Central Park May 14th

An even slower day than Sunday, complete with overcast conditions, was enlivened by two things: large numbers of Cedar Waxwings, one or two of which were doing the berry-passing courtship ritual, and a female Summer Tanager which was between Belvedere Castle and Delacorte Theater.  Still very much an overshoot bird from its more southerly breeding territories, Summer Tanager is an annual but pretty scarce park visitor.  Also around the castle were continuing Tree Swallows, which surely must be thinking about nesting there (if they try they usually fail) and two Orchard Orioles, a female and immature male.

Peregrine Falcon                       
Chimney Swift                          
Eastern Wood-Pewee                     
Red-eyed Vireo                         
Tree Swallow                           
Veery                                  
Swainson's Thrush                      
Wood Thrush                            
Cedar Waxwing                          
Ovenbird                               
Northern Waterthrush                   
Black-and-white Warbler                
Common Yellowthroat                    
American Redstart                      
Northern Parula                        
Magnolia Warbler                       
Blackburnian Warbler                   
Yellow Warbler                         
Chestnut-sided Warbler                 
Blackpoll Warbler                      
Black-throated Blue Warbler            
Yellow-rumped Warbler                  
Canada Warbler                         
Wilson's Warbler                       
Summer Tanager                         
Scarlet Tanager                        
Rose-breasted Grosbeak                 
Orchard Oriole                         

Central Park - May 12th

After not coming in during the week despite reasonable migration motion, Saturday was at least sunny so I took in more spring migration in Central Park.  I netted 19 species of warbler in a typical mix of species.  Most noteworthy was a Yellow-billed Cuckoo that I saw fly out of Maintenance Field and somehow managed to track on two successive hops before making the ID.  Thankfully others also got on the bird.  A close second best were two Bay-breasted Warblers seen on the bridle path that parallels the south side of the Reservoir - a good place for Bay-breasted and Cape Mays in recent years.  Despite hearing one Cape May I could not catch sight of it.  Other new-for-year birds included common ones: Red-eyed Vireo, Eastern Wood-Pewee and Blackpoll Warbler.  I also saw 4-5 different Blackburnian Warblers, including a female - I rarely see these.  There was also an anomalous Great Blue Heron headed north at high altitude over the park - it's long past the point where these should be nesting.

Some signs of less than epic volume included a lack of Catharus thrushes - I saw a grand total of 3.

Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Eastern Kingbird
Red-eyed Vireo
House Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Veery
Swainson's Thrush
Wood Thrush
Gray Catbird
Brown Thrasher 
Cedar Waxwing
Ovenbird
Black-and-white Warbler
Nashville Warbler  (heard)
Common Yellowthroat
American Redstart
Northern Parula
Magnolia Warbler
Bay-breasted Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler  (several)
Prairie Warbler (heard)
Black-throated Green Warbler
Canada Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Eastern Towhee 
White-throated Sparrow  - a few remain
Scarlet Tanager
Rose-breasted Grosbeak

Central Park, May 6th - the day of the Red Admirals

The final day of the early May quartet of Central Park visits had the lowest volume.  Falconer's Hill was quiet (no Indigo's, even) but there were a couple of patches on the west side of the Ramble, particularly the Upper Lobe, were warblers showed well including multiple singing Blackburnian Warblers.  I did have a singing Wilson's Warbler at Hernshead which was a first for the season (FOY was TX in January).  Actual first of year birds were Eastern Kingbird, Swainson's Thrush and finally snagging a look at an Orchard Oriole.  I did come up with 16 warbler species, but numbers were low and most birds were singles (Nashvilles and Blackburnians were the exception).

The most interesting observation of the day was the abundant Red Admirals that were milling around the park - I'd seen reports of masses of the on the move the previous day in NJ and PA, and they had come out in force in Central Park on Sunday.  I saw hundreds in my limited area of coverage, so I imagine there were tens of thousands in the park.  It was mainly Red Admirals with a few Commas and Painted Lady's mixed in.

Time to take a break from Central Park and hope to time the next migration wave.

American Kestrel                       
Chimney Swift                          
Eastern Kingbird                       
Blue-headed Vireo                      
Warbling Vireo                         
House Wren                             
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher                  
Swainson's Thrush                      
Hermit Thrush                          
Wood Thrush                            
Ovenbird                               
Northern Waterthrush                   
Black-and-white Warbler                
Nashville Warbler                      
Common Yellowthroat                    
American Redstart                      
Northern Parula                        
Magnolia Warbler                       
Blackburnian Warbler                   
Yellow Warbler                         
Chestnut-sided Warbler                 
Black-throated Blue Warbler            
Yellow-rumped Warbler                  
Prairie Warbler                        
Black-throated Green Warbler           
Wilson's Warbler                       
Eastern Towhee                         
Chipping Sparrow                       
White-crowned Sparrow                  
Indigo Bunting                         
Orchard Oriole                         
Baltimore Oriole 
                     
On the way home from the train I visited Negri-Nepote Grasslands (Franklin Twp, NJ) to check out the pond.  Prairie Warblers, Indigo Buntings and Grasshopper Sparrows were singing - the burst of sunshine certainly helped.  On the pond were Solitary Sandpiper and Least Sandpipers, and this little patch of water continues to be a draw for migrating shorebirds.

Central Park, May 5th

Another overcast day ending in -y, so back to Central Park.  The Grasshopper Sparrow put in another appearance, as did even more Indigo Buntings and a White-crowned Sparrow.  I'd been hearing the White-crowned, but not seeing them, and Falconer's is one of the best places in the park to find them.

The Ramble was significantly quieter than previous days, perhaps with much of the volume of the Weds-Fri migration burst passing through.  Small patches of warbler activity, especially on the west side of the Ramble, added to the warbler species total of 12 but there was clearly a lot less volume around.  Apart from the Grasshopper Sparrow one of the more interesting birds of the day for me was my FOY Green Heron which was feeding in Azalea Pond despite being a little too sensitive to the passing dog walkers and periodically retreating to the trees.  Potential FOY birds Orchard Oriole and Red-eyed Vireo were heard but not seen, but there are still very few Red-eyed in the park.

Green Heron                            
Chimney Swift                       
Northern Flicker                       
Blue-headed Vireo                      
Warbling Vireo                         
Red-eyed Vireo (heard)                    
Barn Swallow                           
House Wren                             
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher                  
Wood Thrush                          
Ovenbird                               
Blue-winged Warbler                    
Black-and-white Warbler                
Nashville Warbler                      
Common Yellowthroat                    
American Redstart                      
Northern Parula                        
Magnolia Warbler                       
Blackburnian Warbler                   
Chestnut-sided Warbler                 
Yellow-rumped Warbler                  
Black-throated Green Warbler    
Grasshopper Sparrow     
Chipping Sparrow                       
Swamp Sparrow                          
White-throated Sparrow                 
White-crowned Sparrow                  
Scarlet Tanager                        
Indigo Bunting                         
Orchard Oriole (heard)                         
Baltimore Oriole                       
        

Central Park, May 4th

On the second of what was eventually four consecutive days birding the park, the numbers in the Ramble were almost as high as the previous day (Thursday).  The highlight of the day was a Grasshopper Sparrow which had been found on the croquet courts the previous day, and which I happened to find first on adjacent Falconer's Hill early in the morning.  This is my third species of Ammodramus sparrow in Central Park - the others being Saltmarsh Sparrow (twice!) and Nelson's Sparrow.  My park list is now 196 although getting to 200 would be quite a challenge.  Also on Falconer's were the colorful duo of male Indigo Bunting and two male Scarlet Tanager.

A close second in the celebrity stakes was a male Cerulean Warbler, initially silent but finally singing, making it easier to find in its traditional canopy top habits.  The area it was found in (the small hillock now called the "Captain's Bench" is approximately the same as that of last year, and might reflect the Cerulean's habitat preference of sycamores associated with nearby water, at least based on where I find them in NJ and NY.  Many Baltimore Orioles were nearby, particularly fond of the flowering Tulip Trees.

Other good birds included Veery, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Yellow-throated Vireos, Blackburnian Warblers and a Least Flycatcher that actually vocalized in addition to a silent Empidonax seen later.  The light was still challenging, with significant overcast, which made identifications frequently a challenge.  Before returning to Falconer's Hill to watch the Grasshopper Sparrow again in the early afternoon I saw quite an unlikely event: a Solitary Sandpiper flying through the Ramble at eye level headed through the trees toward the Lake.

16 species of warbler, down a little from the previous day but covering reduced territory.

Solitary Sandpiper                     
Ruby-throated Hummingbird              
Least Flycatcher                       
Empidonax sp. (Least-ish)                    
Great Crested Flycatcher               
Yellow-throated Vireo                  
Blue-headed Vireo                      
Warbling Vireo                         
House Wren                             
Ruby-crowned Kinglet                   
Veery                                  
Hermit Thrush                          
Wood Thrush                            
Brown Thrasher                         
Ovenbird                               
Northern Waterthrush                   
Black-and-white Warbler                
Nashville Warbler                      
Common Yellowthroat                    
American Redstart                      
Cerulean Warbler                       
Northern Parula                        
Magnolia Warbler                       
Blackburnian Warbler                   
Yellow Warbler                         
Chestnut-sided Warbler                 
Black-throated Blue Warbler            
Yellow-rumped Warbler                  
Prairie Warbler                        
Black-throated Green Warbler           
Eastern Towhee                         
Chipping Sparrow                       
Grasshopper Sparrow                    
Swamp Sparrow                          
Scarlet Tanager                        
Rose-breasted Grosbeak                 
Indigo Bunting                         

Migration wave, Central Park, May 3rd

It is approaching the peak season of  May 5th-12th, and today's birding showed that despite challenging viewing conditions with dark overcast.  I left the camera at home - a rarity for me - and ranged further afield, starting at the North End which already had interesting reports by the time I reached the park.  I found one of these birds - a Tennessee Warbler - fairly quickly.  The Tennessee was literally belting its song out, although it was a lot easier to hear than see and I only got mediocre views.  For quite a while it was singing semi-continuously.  There were also a lot of other singing birds, particularly Nashvilles and Yellows.  I found Yellow-throated Vireo by song, and saw at least two up there.  Blue-headed Vireo was especially numerous.  I also found Blackburnian by song, and finally tracked down a Blue-winged when I was searching for the elusive "Lawrence's" (Blue-winged x Golden-winged).  I also had a fleeting glimpse of a tantalizing bird - something that by size and particularly color was either a female Summer Tanager or a female Blue Grosbeak, but which was extremely uncooperative and I had to leave that unidentified.  I didn't even wander off the Great Hill, such was the activity.  There was also a Least-ish Empidonax flycatcher hunting low on the south slope of Great Hill, but did not sing for confirmation.

Eventually I headed south toward the Ramble.  I found Prairie Warbler near the Tennis Courts, American Redstart at the nw corner of the Reservoir, and about 100 yards south I stopped to listen to something that sounded somewhere in the range Hooded-Magnolia Warbler song.  It wasn't full-fledged Hooded and I suspected Magnolia for a while because a second bird was answering it.  The west side of the Reservoir is not really Hooded Warbler territory being mainly trees with little understory.  A  surprise, then, when this second bird turned out to be a male Hooded Warbler, and the first male Hooded showed itself after they'd taken a break from singing at each other.

Nothing was happening at the Upper Lobe at the Ramble, despite Bay-breasted being reported there earlier, but I did pick up Hermit Thrush and my first Wood Thrush nearby.  Toward Azalea Pond there was a good mix of warblers present, with two Magnolias and  Black-throated Blue Warbler also being new for the year.  Down at the Gill there was Northern Waterthrush, Northern Parula (one of many heard all day) and another year-first: Canada Warbler.

On my way out of the park I picked up two Great Crested Flycatchers and a single Veery, bringing my new-for-the-year additions to a grand total of twelve and a total of twenty warbler species for the day, with Tennessee and Hooded the best of those.

American Kestrel
Empidonax sp.
Great Crested Flycatcher
Yellow-throated Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo  (many)
Warbling Vireo
House Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Veery
Hermit Thrush
Wood Thrush
Gray Catbird
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Blue-winged Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler (many)
Tennessee Warbler
Nashville Warbler (several)
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
American Redstart
Northern Parula
Magnolia Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Palm Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Canada Warbler
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Baltimore Oriole (several)

Central Park, April 28th

In one week numbers have dropped because of indifferent migration weather, but diversity has exploded.  Somehow - and many of these were heard-only - I racked up 15 species of warbler in a morning while spending chunks of it looking for a Kentucky Warbler.

The Kentucky had been seen the previous day and stuck around the same place in Shakespeare Garden on the Saturday.  I was told it had not been seen in an hour, but Kentucky's often make regular circuits of the same terrain and vanish for quite some time between appearances.  I first saw it - a ventral view - scooting into a tree and dropping onto the ground whence it did a very Kentucky thing and vanished entirely.  Subsequently found by others it eventually ante'd up by perching on the fence and the semi-exposed rock.  Right on time, that Kentucky, in the last few days of April.

Also right on time was the Nashville in Strawberry Fields, the singing Prairie Warbler in the Upper Lobe and the Blue-winged singing on top of Shakespeare Garden.  Two of these were heard-only, but at least I found a Northern Parula near Belvedere Castle while being taunted by an elusive Black-throated Green.  Challenging Kentucky for the best bird of the day was a singing Orange-crowned Warbler in the big oak still standing in Maintenance Field.  Another decent bird was a Chestnut-sided Warbler also in the Maintenance Field.  Despite a warm winter and prematurely warm March the migrant timing is pretty much as expected - some early appearances but most of them are clamped by the need to fly a couple of thousand miles during spring.  Kind of tough to speed that up.  This is still a transitional stage in spring migration, as evidenced by more early spring species like Blue-headed Vireo and Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, and Hermit Thrush as the only Catharus.

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Blue-headed Vireo
Barn Swallow
House Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Hermit Thrush
Gray Catbird
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Blue-winged Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Kentucky Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Palm Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Eastern Towhee

Negri-Nepote, pre-deluge, Apr 22nd

Yellow Warbler was singing from the neighborhood when I was getting ready to depart for Negri-Nepote despite threatening weather and a day's worth of rain headed up on the southerly winds.  It didn't quite make it to my yard list or my year list, since I never saw it and it didn't come quite close enough.

Instead, in heavy cloud and beginning drizzle I headed out to Negri-Nepote Grasslands (Franklin Twp) to check for shorebirds in the small pond there.  Field Sparrow, Chipping Sparrow, Eastern Towhee, House Wren and Common Yellowthroat were all singing.  Along with four Mallard males in the pond were four breeding plumage Greater Yellowlegs, a nice find, and the real prize was a Pectoral Sandpiper at the back of the pond.  No Wilson's Snipe, recently reported here, but I don't usually see Pectoral until the fall.  As the rain started to fall I retreated to snag my first seen Common Yellowthroat for spring migration, close to the parking lot.

Central Park, Apr 21st

Apparently getting a little slow in my old age, I missed the 0612 train into Manhattan by 1 minute and spent 45 minutes at Princeton Institute Woods while waiting for the next one, which was if anything more productive than Central Park: heard but not seen Common Yellowthroats; singing Rose-breasted Grosbeak; singing Black-and-white Warbler; singing Gray Catbird; singing House Wren.  It was a little cool so activity only started to pick up while I was there.

The Ramble in Central Park was not having its best day, even allowing for the fact I got there an hour later than intended.  Strawberry Fields was quiet, there was a Northern Waterthrush feeding and singing in the small stream that flows under Balcony Bridge, but many areas in the Ramble were slow enough that I only spent about three hours there.  Yellow-rumped and Palm Warblers were still around, Black-and-white Warbler was a new addition for this migration, but it was notably slower than the previous weekend.  The woods at the North End was rather more productive, judging from reports (Worm-eating, Prothonotary).

Central Park, April 14th/15th

In a series of days with strong south-westerly wind components I did a rare mid-April "double" weekend, traveling by train into Manhattan on both Saturday and Sunday. Usually in mid April there's not enough volume of diversity to pull me in on both days.

While diversity was lacking, there was a lot of volume on both days. Warblers dominated Saturday but sparrows put in a good showing on Sunday. Multiple Louisiana Waterthrushes on both days, year firsts like Brown Creeper and Winter Wren, my House Wren early date for the north east, and Brown Thrasher my earliest date for the park by about 10 days. The aggregate list did not contain anything remarkable, but the number of birds for the middle of April was surely one of the best migration movements for that date I'd seen in years.

Also of note was a leucistic White-throated Sparrow that I saw in Strawberry Fields on both days (photos obtained on Sunday) which had a striking mostly-white head.

Double-crested Cormorant
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Northern Flicker
Blue-headed Vireo
House Wren
Winter Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Hermit Thrush
Brown Thrasher
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Pine Warbler
Palm Warbler
Louisiana Waterthrush
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Brown-headed Cowbird
American Goldfinch

Central Park 5/24

On the day before setting off on my Louisiana conference trip I took a morning and birded Central Park for almost certainly the last time this spring migration. Spring migration started with a bang in late April where everything seemed early, then stalled with bad weather in the traditional peak window.

So here we are on May 22nd, and there's still a fair number of adult males singing in the trees: Northern Parula, Ovenbird, Common Yellowthroat, Blackpoll Warbler (inevitable), Canada Warbler, American Redstart, one or two Magnolia Warblers, Black-throated Blue Warbler. Adding to the warbler list was Northern Waterthrush and Yellow Warbler. But most species were heard singing, although it was a mix of males and females seen. Migration may have some legs yet, but I'll be away for close to two weeks and I anticipate things will be pretty slow by the time I get back out.

Best bird of the day was a Lincoln's Sparrow at Tanner's Spring.

Chimney Swift
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Great Crested Flycatcher
Red-eyed Vireo
Veery
Swainson's Thrush
Cedar Waxwing
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
American Redstart
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Common Yellowthroat
Canada Warbler
Chipping Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Baltimore Oriole

CPK 5/3 (Acadian, Cape May)

I often feel like Accuweather let the 16-year old interns play with the forecast, so I wasn't totally surprised on Monday evening to see that Sunday's forecast for the week was wrong and Tuesday had prospects for a good migration day.

And so it was.

Entering Strawberry Fields at 7:15am I saw three Great Blue Herons migrating north. Isn't that a little late for them ? I had Great Blues migrating over the ocean on 3/26. Also in Strawberry were a lot of Gray Catbirds (as in: 7 in one small tree, many elsewhere). Outnumbering the Catbirds were White-throated Sparrows, which were there in the hundreds. Common Yellowthroat also put in a strong showing today too, and I saw at least twenty.

There were rarities about, but I only put my eyes on a few really interesting birds. The high point for me was an Acadian Flycatcher in Strawberry Fields (greenish, long-billed, long-primary projection). Acadian was my #1 park nemesis bird for many years - I've heard a few over the years - but compared to the Least Flycatchers I saw later the difference was quite marked. Marked, that is, for an Empidonax. Other nice birds included multiple singing White-crowned Sparrows (never common there), Cape May Warbler, Hooded Warbler. I also picked up Rose-breasted Grosbeak and American Redstart as year birds along with the Cape May Warbler, Acadian and Least Flycatchers. One of the better nn-FOY birds was Louisiana Waterthrush which stood out since the supercilium was indeed "the whitest thing on the bird". Lots of Northern Waterthrushes too. 17 warber species in all - pretty good going for a day originally forecast as rainy.


Great Blue Heron
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Chimney Swift
Acadian Flycatcher
Least Flycatcher
Great Crested Flycatcher
White-eyed Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Veery
Hermit Thrush
Wood Thrush
Gray Catbird
Nashville Warbler
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Cape May Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
American Redstart
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Louisiana Waterthrush
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
Scarlet Tanager
Eastern Towhee
White-crowned Sparrow
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Baltimore Oriole

Good Weekend Part 1, April 30th

As Chris pointed out, what you don't normally get is multiple Blackburnian Warblers on April 30th. And yet here one was, singing 20 feet over my head. The day had started cloudy and slow, although with pockets of activity. When the sun came out the Ramble lit up in terms of migrants: Veery, Wood Thrush, Blue-winged Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Nashville Warbler, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Magnolia Warbler, Cerulean Warbler, Red-eyed Vireo were the first-of-year birds. The Cerulean, while typically high, was quite vocal and gave decent looks.

I ended up with 16 warbler species, which is rather a high total for April, especially since I was carrying the camera. Cape May and Bay-breasted were reported from the north of the park, Worm-eating from the Ramble, so the multiple observer total was comfortably in the 20's.

Double-crested Cormorant
Great Egret (fly-over)
Northern Shoveler
Wood Duck
Chimney Swift
Northern Flicker
Blue-headed Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo (1)
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Barn Swallow
House Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Veery (1)
Wood Thrush (1)
Gray Catbird
Brown Thrasher
Blue-winged Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Northern Parula
Chestnut-sided Warbler (1)
Magnolia Warbler (1)
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler (several)
Blackburnian Warbler (2++)
Prairie Warbler (1 heard)
Palm Warbler
Cerulean Warbler (1 singing)
Black-and-white Warbler
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Common Yellowthroat
Eastern Towhee
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole (1st year male at Polish Statue)
Baltimore Oriole
Purple Finch (Polish Statue and Maintenance Field)
American Goldfinch

Central Park 4/24 - good migration

On about as good a migration day as I've seen as early April 24th, a warm day following a wet day filled the park with migrants. Most of the migrants were Black-and-white Warblers (all male) and Yellow-rumped Warblers, but I did come up with 12 warbler species by the time I left around 1pm.

In the Maintenance Field things started off slowly, with two Brown Thrashers, Common Yellowthroat and Chimney Swift (first-of-year for me). Then Hermit Thrush and Northern Flicker put in an appearance and I had a brief look at Northern Parula flitting from tree to tree. Around Azalea Pond things were more active with multiple B+W Warblers and Yellow-rumped. My only Palm Warbler for the day passed through. Then I found by chance a silent Yellow-throated Vireo, for the longest time my only vireo of the day but I was to add Blue-headed Vireo later on. Northern Waterthrush was singing at Azalea Pond and there were several around including a very vocal one at the Upper Lobe. Near the Upper Lobe I also found a very mobile singing Yellow Warbler along with silent individual Blue-winged Warbler and Great Crested Flycatcher. Over at Sparrow Ridge (Sparrow Rock) near Tanner's Spring I found two Field Sparrows, a Black-throated Green Warbler and located a vocal Baltimore Oriole. Then up in the small flat area between Shakespeare Garden and Belvedere Castle I saw both the reported Hooded Warbler (first year male, by appearance) and tracked down the first year male Orchard Oriole by its chatter. The final hurrah for the day was a singing Black-throated Blue Warbler in the Oven.

Looking at the sightings logs I keep online, the Yellow-throated Vireo was by far my earliest one - previously May 1st was my early date. But the Black-throated Blue was more or less on time (my early date for that is the 20th). But there's still a lot of spring to come.

First of year birds in the following list are marked with FOY.

Red-tailed Hawk
Chimney Swift (FOY)
Great Crested Flycatcher
Blue-headed Vireo
Yellow-throated Vireo (FOY)
Black-capped Chickadee
White-breasted Nuthatch
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Hermit Thrush
Brown Thrasher
Blue-winged Warbler (FOY)
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler (FOY)
Black-throated Blue Warbler (FOY)
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler (FOY)
Palm Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
Ovenbird (FOY)
Northern Waterthrush (FOY)
Hooded Warbler (FOY)
Common Yellowthroat
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole (FOY)
Baltimore Oriole (FOY)

Central Park after the deluge, 4/17

Saturday ended amidst a storm of epic proportions, which cleared out too late to provide much of an overnight migration. So while I traveled into Central Park on Sunday I had to work hard to see any migrants at all. I came up with a single drab female Pine Warbler for the new world warbler list, although it was perfect habitat for Waterthrushes or Rusty Blackbird given the amount of water in the Ramble. Most interesting bird for me was an immature Sharp-shinned Hawk sitting in the Evodia Field, which showed little interest in making a pass at the American Goldfinches working a way at the last remaining feeder.

Double-crested Cormorant
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Northern Flicker
Black-capped Chickadee
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Hermit Thrush
Pine Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Fox Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
American Goldfinch