A rank beginner in New York, New York (1 Viewer)

[Pinewood]

Probably

In the last few days, I have seen nothing special. Sunday, I saw three northern flickers in one tree, as well as that immature hawk breakfasting on a pigeon. Yesterday, I saw a wren scuttling around in underbrush. I never got a good view of this little bird but I would guess that it was a winter wren by its behaviour.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur

 

[Pinewood]

The crocuses are croaking, perhaps a bit late, but surely a sign of spring. I have also seen house finches far from the Park's feeders. Another sign of spring is a song sparrow like this one from the BF Gallery. Aside from seeing that red tailed hawk at tree top level, today's walk included an encounter with an Eastern, or rufous sided, towhee.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :scribe:

 

[Pinewood]

My most important sightings in the last week, were of Eastern phoebes, on Thursday and today. The bird resembles this image from the Birdforum gallery.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:

 

[streatham]

Not gone over for the Western Tanager Arthur - couldn't be any easier right by the 81st Street Entrance - I'm working in the city these days so I popped in on my lunch break and had the bird in 2 minutes of entering the park. Another cracking western vagrant in a NYC park this year.

 

[ceasar]

I'm always a bit skeptical about vagrants but the Western Tanager is a common enough vagrant in the east. If vagrant birds can be described as common? Was it a male or female? The male should be getting into breeding color by now with a reddish head.

I still have doubts about the Scott's Oriole. (That one would be a first for the Northeast) but the photo's did look somewhat like a female. I wonder if it was an escaped exotic?

Cordially,
Bob

 

[Pinewood]

A hiatus in bird watching

Although West 81st Street is close to my patch, at the occasional edge of my walk, this week was spent without bird watching, as my father has been unwell. Two trips to the emergency room and tests showed that he was in need of a pacemaker. He is now home and feels well.
My walks to Roosevelt hospital took me through some quiet off-street areas with trees, where I saw a northern flicker, and a junco and I thought that I heard a northern mockingbird.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur

 

[Dave Hall]

Hi Arthur just catching up with your reports been away for 3 weeks birding in the Sultanate of Oman Seems like your starting to get some early spring birds now Is this the normal time for these birds to be with you ?

Hope your Father is feeling better

Dave

 

[dolphinbride]

Hello there Arthur,

I hope all is with your father, perhaps a colorful early migrant will stop by his window!

Sounds as if Spring has sprung for you in NYC. No croaking of crocuses as yet, but I have heard Spring Peepers peeping! I envy your Mockingbird, I have to travel (though not far) to see them. I'm waiting for a phoebe or brown creeper here, but I did watch a Kestrel hovering a week or so ago. Loads of raptors... any sign of the young Redtail?

Best,
Kristina

 

[Pinewood]

Dave and Kristina,

The early spring birds have arrived. If I were to get to Central Park, I would expect to see flycatchers. Last year, in the middle of April, I saw a belted kingfisher, but that was unusual.

I thank you for the kind thoughts and wishes for my father, who has returned from the hospital in rather better shape than when he was admitted. Father is also in reasonably good spirits. Friday, he will have his surgical wound inspected.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:

 

[Pinewood]

Hello there Arthur,

I hope all is with your father, perhaps a colorful early migrant will stop by his window!
...

Best,
Kristina

Kristina, nothing colorful came to my father's window but a nice phoebe stopped by his window, a few days, ago. He has improved immensely.

Today, I took a long walk as far as the Central Park Reservoir, where I saw an American coot, northern shovellers, ring-billed gulls and a diving duck, which was hundreds of meters, away. I thought that it may have been a bufflehead but it may have been a hooded merganser. I also visited a flat on the ninth floor of a builidng on Central Park West. In the early spring, it has a great view of birds in the trees, but a spotting scope would have been handy.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:

 

[Pinewood]

There are song sparrows aobut, and the phoebes are still around, as well as juncos towhees, flickers, hermit thrushes, common grackles and white crowned sparrows. I heard reports of night herons as well. I think that I may have seen a juvenile chipping sparrow; it was like a song sparrow without a "knot" on the chest. However I am open to suggestions.

At home, juncos and mourning doves were at my window, today, but yesterday brought another phoebe.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur

 

[ceasar]

Arthur,
Do you have a bird feeder on or by your window?
Bob

 

[Pinewood]

Arthur,
Do you have a bird feeder on or by your window?
Bob

Bob,

I do not have a feeder. I should write that I saw these birds, from my window. Some were a few meters, away, but all in plain sight.

In post #269, wrote:
I live perhaps 260 meters from Broadway and 130 meters from the edge of the park along the Hudson. A couple of my windows are obscured by bushes at the edge of a large area of grass, trees, and plagrounds, a private park for several apartment buildings, stretching for more than 200 meters. Nevertheless, although from my window I have not seen much of interest, I am more favoured than most New York apartment dwellers. The building's governing board would not let me hang any feeder from my window, as that would be unsightly.


A physician I know who lives rather close to Central Park has a mourning dove incubating eggs on his window sill.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur

 

[Pinewood]

A Sunday stroll

Today, I managed to walk for about one kilometre, getting as far as Turtle pond. There were three birds of note, including a swamp sparrow which probably was the questionable sighting, two posts, back. I was alongside a more experienced bird watcher who pointed to a bird and said, "Warbler." To which I replied that it was a white throated sparrow of the tan race, as I examined the top of its head. It turned out to be a golden crowned kinglet, when a complete view was obtained. Lastly, there was a black crowned night heron on the island of Turtle Pond.

At the pond, I also saw a red-winged blackbird, with a very red epualet; the red-winged blackbirds seem to have dropped in number, as the phragmites, along the Lake have been removed, as the shores have been restored. Another consequence of the restoration has been reduced cover on the shores, which used to be inviting to wood ducks.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur

 

[Pinewood]

A surpise, at home

Today's bird watching highligts were my sightings of double crested cormorants and a great egret on Central Park Lake. I also managed to see a tufted titmouse, which I had not seen for a while.
Yesterday's highlight was not the two red tailed hawks in the Park but seeing a yellow bellied sapsucker in the birch trees in front of my block of flats, that is my apartment house. The little 'sucker did not do any tapping but seemed to be closely examining the bark. It looked like this one from the BF Gallery .

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :t:

 

[Pinewood]

Warblers are here!

The weather is getting warmer. Yesterday, the temperature topped at 22ºC and today a temperature of 27ºC may be reached. Today's morning walk, when it was still pleasant, was rewarded with warblers: palm, yellow rumped, Cape May, a blue headed vireo and an ovenbird like this one, from the BirdForum gallery. This is "pain in the neck season," as the warblers are generally high in the trees. A mature red-tailed hawk also crossed my path.
From my window, at home, I have seen a hermit thrush; in front of my building two female yellow bellied sapsuckers visited the birch trees.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :scribe:

 

[Pinewood]

The warblers are still coming

The warbler season has hardly begun but they are still showing up. My neighbor's flat had a flood, which leaked into my place, robbing me of sleep from 0100 to 0400, Thursday, so I skipped my walk.

Today, I saw a blue winged warbler, a common yellow throat and got a rather poor look at a yellow throated vireo like this one from the Gallery.

Wednesday, I saw a single gray catbird, but today they were rather common. Additionally, I saw a male red winged blackbird, which has become uncommon around Central Park Lake.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :scribe:

 

[Dave Hall]

Hi Arthur Glad to here that you are starting to get the warblers Is the lack of Red-winged Blackbirds around the lake due to the work done last year? We had a day in 2004 I think it was when loads of Catbirds turned up overnight Keep the reports coming:t: Dave

 

[Pinewood]

At home and at the Park

Hello Dave,

The restoration of the Lake's shore has destroyed wetlands, those swampy areas of sedimentation where phragmites grew. Even though the total area cleared was small, perhaps 150 square meters, in four or five spots, the red winged blackbirds have become scarce. I often encountered red winged blackbirds, near Bank Rock Bridge where there was no open water between the Upper Lobe and the rest of the Lake. There is now open water, as there was when the Park was created. A temporary dam was built for the workmen, but it will go after a new bridge is built.

At home, I have seen gray catbirds, a rufous sided towhee and ovenbirds. In the Park, the warblers keep arriving. Black and white, worm eating and Blackburnian warblers, American redstarts, warbling vireos, plenty of ovenbirds and ruby crowned kinglets have turned up for me. There was an egret at Turtle Pond but no night herons, of late. I saw a sparrow which had me puzzled, but another bird watcher remarked on seeing a Lincoln sparrow in just about the same location.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:

 

[jacquot]

Keep your eyes open, a male cerulean warbler was seen in a street tree on the upper west side over the weekend! I had 12 warbler species easily on a Sunday morning in the burbs, with 3 others reported on Saturday--but no cerulean. Like you many ovenbirds as well as many black and white warblers and ruby crowned kinglets. My special bird was a male hooded warbler that was very cooperative. Several have been seen in Central Park, and they are spectacular.