From my Manhattan Window (2 Viewers)

[Pinewood]

Into autumn

Hello all,

As the seasons change there are always a few birds which seem to hang around a bit late. In the past week, I was still seeing hermit thrushes, song sparrows and a gray catbird.

On Sunday, we had about 2.3 cm of rain. In the rain, I spotted a nuthatch, who's breast revealed that it was a redbreast nuthatch. Monday, I saw a brown creeper Today, I had a good look at mature Cooper Hawk, which delighted some Bournemouth visitors to Central Park. A little later, I saw my first tufted titmouse of the season, which I thought was rather late, but birds do not read field guides.

At the Reservoir, I managed to five different ducks, a bufflehead, ruddy ducks, northern shovelers, mallards and a pie billed grebe, but earlier I saw hooded mergansers at Turtle pond. On the Reservoir,I also saw a distant dark gray duck with a white speculum but I could not identify but it was certainly not an American coot.

Just before leaving the Park, I saw a fox sparrow at Tanner's Spring.

All images by Louis Agassiz Fuertes.

Tomorrow is America's Thanksgiving holiday, which means limited access to the Park and movement in the Park will be restricted.

Happy bird watching :scribe:,
Arthur

 

[Pinewood]

Hello,

As I suspected, Thanksgiving Day was unrewarding. As many entrances to the Park were closed, I walked to the Pool and saw nothing but mallards, The next day, I did notice northern shovellers on the Lake but not afterwards. On Tuesday, I saw a male red-winged blackbird, who must have been stopping on his way south, and a common grackle, which I had not seen for a while.

In the last few days, I have seen many house finches and the occasional white breasted nuthatch but not what I would expect to see this time of the year.

Yesterday's trip to the Reservoir provided me with a nice assortment of ducks and ducklike birds: shovelloer, ruddy ducks, ring billed ducks, a pie billed grebe, buffleheads and hooded mergansers.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:

 

[Pinewood]

slow

Hello,

It has been slow. Action around the feeders in Central Park has been reduced by the frequent presence of either Cooper hawks or red-tailed hawks. Last Sunday, a juvenile red tailed was near the feeders where he was twice unsuccessful in taking a gray squirrel. Nevertheless, I have seen two chipping sparrows in the last eight days.y
In the past week, we had some cold mornings: Wednesday morning -7ºC. So by now the Lake and Turtle Pond are covered in ice. The Reservoir, which is still ice free, has nice assortment of waterfowl: northern shovellers, mallards, ruddy ducks, hooded merganser, a pie-billed grebe, buffleheads, and today, an American coot..

I have also seen American goldfinches in winter plumage.

The block of flats with two towers, called the El Dorado, overlooking the Reservoir, was once the home of Groucho Marx and of Faye Dunaway. Malcolm Baldwin was a recent resident but I am uncertain if he is a current resident.

A MERRY CHRISTMAS to all.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:

 

[delia todd]

Thanks, Arthur, for your lovely reports and the super pictures you post to illustrate them too.

A merry Christmas and happy New Year to you and your family.

 

[Pinewood]

Thanks, Arthur, for your lovely reports and the super pictures you post to illustrate them too.

A merry Christmas and happy New Year to you and your family.

Hello Delia,

Thank you very much.

With warm regards,
Arthur

 

[Pinewood]

Winter in New York

Hello,

I have yet to see a black capped chickadee's and hardly see any white breasted nuthatches. However, I did see a pair of Eastern towhees, am still seeing brown creepers, as well as that great blue heron and I had a very good look at a Cooper Hawk.
Today was wet and cloudy.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:

 

[KC Foggin]

Still a good week for you it would seem Arthur.

I did see a White-breasted Nuthatch last weekend but haven't posted it yet

 

[Pinewood]

Still a good week for you it would seem Arthur.

I did see a White-breasted Nuthatch last weekend but haven't posted it yet

Hello KC,

As I have written, I never have a bad week bird watching in Central Park. Although, I regret missing the Iceland gull, last Sunday.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:

 

[Pinewood]

Winter, not wintry

Hello,

After a couple of cold days, -6.5ºC, in early December, the weather has been extraordinarily mild, especially this past weekend, when the temperature hit 20ºC. An ornithologist, Dr. Robert deCandid, told me that the mild weather has kept many winter visitors away. Yesterday, I saw trees budding, turtles basking on rocks near Central Park Lake and whose white patches were quite brilliant, a sign of entering breeding season. All are rather unseasonable occurrences.
Sunday, I was in a bit of a hurry, as I had to meet people for the New York Botanical Garden Holiday train show and a meal on Arthur Avenue, both on the mainland in the Bronx. I did see the following:
white throated sparrows
northern cardinal
red tailed hawk
Cooper hawk
sharp shinned hawk, maybe
mallards
northern shovellers
house finches
goldfinches
red bellied woodpecker, maie
two great blue herons
hooded mergansers
brown creeper
blue jays
downy woodpeckers

Nothing truly outstanding but they constitute a nice morning.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur

 

[Pinewood]

winter returns

Hello all,

Every late January we get a thaw. As I wrote, December and early January were warm. Yesterday and today, winter returned. This morning it was -7ºC, freezing the Lake and Turtle Pond, but the Reservoir still had open water with mallards, northern shovellers, ruddy ducks and a pair of buffleheads.

In the last week, I saw my third fox sparrow of the season and a chipping sparrow was still around before the cold snap. I got glimpses of a purple finch and probably a black capped chickadee. Today, a murder of American crows passed overhead. After an absence of a couple of weeks, mourning doves are again common. Raptors, red-tailed and Cooper hawks are a daily sight.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:

 

[Pinewood]

The snowdrops are in bloom

Hello,

I have seen very little new. The week before last, I saw three woodpeckers in one day: downy, red bellied and a yellow bellied sapsucker..

The Reservoir is always rewarding: hooded mergansers, which did turn up on the Lake, as well, mallards, northern shovellers, buffleheads ruddy ducks and a pie billed grebe. Last week, an American coot appeared on the Reservoir; while today a female gadwall turned up.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :scribe:

 

[Pinewood]

Hello,

The only new bird turning up was a non-breeding double crested cormorant on the Reservoir, last week. It was earlier than usual.

The week before, I saw a red bellied woodpecker make three nesting holes, which it seems to have abandoned Otherwise, the same old, enlivened by daily appearances of great blue herons on either the Lake or Turtle Pond and frequent closeups of Cooper hawks.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:.

 

[Pinewood]

Almost Nothing Special

Hello,

Of late, I have frequently seen both a mature and an immature Cooper hawk, but today, I saw none. However, I did see a pair of red-tailed hawks, aloft, circling each other.
The only thing new, today, were two snow geese on the Reservoir. I have seen snow geese aloft and at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge but today was the first time I have seen any floating on the Reservoir.

Today's other birds were American crows, white throated sparrows, blue jays, northern cardinals, house finches, goldfinches, a white breast nuthatch, downy woodpeckers and a red bellied woodpecker, mourning doves, mallards, northern shovellers, buffleheads, ruddy ducks, hooded mergansers, and a great blue heron. "

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :scribe:

 

[KC Foggin]

Sounds like you had a pretty voluminous day Arthur.

I haven't seen any Snow Geese in awhile so good for you guy

 

[Pinewood]

Sounds like you had a pretty voluminous day Arthur.

I haven't seen any Snow Geese in awhile so good for you guy

Hello KC,

Yes, a good day for the middle of February. There were bird watchers at the Reservoir looking for an Iceland goal with no success.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:

 

[Pinewood]

On schedule

Hello,

On Modany, the seventeen, inst., I saw a male redwing blackbird. Checking this thread, I find that my first of last year, was on the eighteenth.

Today, I saw a goose on the Lake. At first, I thought it was blue morph snow goose, but I have been informed that it was identified as a snow goose, gray lag goos hybrid..

I attach a photograph of the only kiosk in Manhattan, which is on West 83rd St. Please note the nice egret atop the kiosk, which replaces a rooster weathervane. I also attach a Central Park view, on a rainy wintry morning.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:

 

[Pinewood]

Crocuses are sprouting

Hello all,

On Sunday and on Monday,, I saw two male downy woodpeckers chasing each other or perhaps dancing about. This was apparently displaying, as part of the courtship routine.

On Sunday, I saw a female common merganser on the Lake. This was a life bird but it had a plastic ring stuck in its bill, probably preventing it from eating. The park workers looked in vain for the bird in attempt to remove the ring. Our trash is killing our wildlife.

Aslo on Sunday, I saw a brown creeper. I saw one in January, so it was not the first for the year. I guess it might count as rather early for the season.

I have been seeing great blue herons, aloft and perching. They are more spectacular in flight than my iPod can capture. So I am providing a photo of one near the shore.

The heron was photographed with an iPod. The other illustrations are by Louis Agassiz Fuertes. The creeper and the common mergansers from Birds of New York by Eaton; the downy from Woodpeckers by Eckstrom

Happy bird watching,
Arthur Pinewood

 

[KC Foggin]

All in all, a good week for you Arthur.

 

[Pinewood]

All in all, a good week for you Arthur.

Hello KC,

I did not even mention the Cooper hawk, hooded mergansers, ruddy ducks, etc.,which are still around.

Happy bird watching,
Arthur :hi:

 

[KC Foggin]

Even better