37th St Sapsucker

Marsh Wren in the bushes in front of the NYPL, at 40th and 5th.

Rainy day. This AM 2 Northern Parulas in a tree behind the building. This afternoon a catbird.
Last week, same tree, an Eastern Towhee.

This prothonotary warbler has been at the NY Public Library on 5th Ave btw 40th and 42nd. According to one non-birder he's been there for some time, but was first posted on the birding elist yesterday. Still there today, thank heaven, so I finally have seen a prothonotary warbler.
The bird has always intrigued me, even before I became interested in birds because of the role it played in the Chambers-Hiss episode. Chambers was able to help prove his link to Hiss because he recalled Hiss being excited about having seen the protho.
Anyway, a nice bird.

A white-headed sparrow amidst the white-throated sparrows at St. Vartan's Park
1st Ave btw 35 & 36th.
A first for me.

Finally some time in Central Park. Wednesday a common yellow throat, northern parula and a yellow rump by the lake.
Friday, yellow rump, female yellow throat, magnolia warbler, ovenbird, cedar wax wings, northern parula and chestnut-sided warbler in the Ramble. Baltimore Oriole on Falconer'sHill.

Work, weather and weariness have kept me from getting out in the field. Around the neighborhood sightings have been rare. A house finch across 1st Ave from St. Vartan's Park on Friday and a white throated sparrow inside the garden, a common yellow throat inside the fence at St. V's garden today. Otherwise, Robins, mourning doves, pigeons house sparrows and starlings. On Wednesday I was heartened to hear and then locate a cardinal as I sat in the 5th floor lunchroom at work.

Pretty slow bird weekend around the neighborhood. At St. Vartan's little park a few gray catbirds hopped around, along with American Robins, European Starlings and a white-throated sparrow. Mourning doves, house sparrows and rock pigeons as always.

The only bird photo I took yesterday, an Eastern Towhee in the Ramble. Much of what I saw yesterday are FOS, and here's the list from 4/29:
Of course, the ubiquitous gang:
House sparrows
Rock pigeons
European Starlings
Blue Jaws
Mallards
Northern Cardinals
Canada geese
Then, in the Ramble and around the lake, brefly:
Eastern Towhee
Yellow rumps everywhere
Palm warbler (not FOS)
Black and white warbler
Northern Waterthrush
Hermit thrushes
Overnbirds
Tree sparrow
White throated sparrows
Titmouse (heard only)
Red-bellied woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Common yellow throat warbler
Ruby Crowned Kinglet

I had only a biref time, but was energized and heartened by the sight and sound of these beautiful creatures. It's like running into old friends.

A hermit thrush in the little garden at St. Vartan's PArk on 1st Avenue between 35th an 36th.
It's been a bad week for birding. I burned my hand rather badly on Easter Sunday, and am missing the Spring migration. I managed to get to Central Park for a try at the yellow-throated warbler which has been around the model boat pond all week. The bird was not there when I was there; he has returned since, but I haven't. This litle thrush is the most exciting thing I've seen.

In the East River near 53rd Brant below, and a gull on the esplanade in the 60s. As I can identify few gulls on working on this large gull, wanting to get it right. I think it's a glaucous gull.

A Common Loon swimming in the East River. Earlier this week an American Black Duck.
I brought the spotting scope to the river today for the first time, and tried my hand digiscoping the Great Black-backed Gulls on U Thant Island, just south of Roosevelt Island. I have a lot of work to do on digiscoping.
Otherwise, one of the red-tails was overhead, around 38th and 3rd.Starlings, American Robin, house sparrows, pigeons, and other gulls, which I didn't bother to ID.

On the 14th or 15th a Red Tail (adult, as far as I could tell) landed on the fire escape about 20 yards from my window, at eye level. The bird was just there for a few seconds, while everything else scattered, then he took off as well. Great moment.

This AM, a chipping sparrow was in the space out back, mixing with the house sparrows. A mocking bird was in the shrubbery out front on Saturday, noonish. First ever for all these birds in my experience of the block.

I came across a woodcock outside St. Vartan's Playground on the 36th St side, between 1st Ave and the tunnel entrance street.

So I was sitting in Yanticaw Brook Park with Aunt Pat and wondering why bird activity was so minimal. A hawk soared above, briefly, then was lost in the clouds, so one might conclude the area was not hospitable for potential prey. Then Bam! A short cry and a few moments later a Red-Tail swooped a few yards in front of our bench, a squirrel in his talons. He perched on a tree branch and had his lunch. I hope the squirrel died sooner rather than later.

1 & 2 Kinglets


3 4 5
Nashville Warbler ???




6 7 8 9
Orange Crowned Warbler



Murray Hill hopped with birds over the past week. The three guys above were all at St. Vartan's Park, the little enclosed garden on 1st Avenue. The other birds were in the area behind my building. I had no time to blog so I'll give them all a shout out now:
Nashville Warbler ( I think, double checking)
Yellow bellied sapsucker
Blue-headed vireo (which I had called "solitary vireo" in ebirds. Time to start using the newer Peterson's.
Red eyed-vireo
Common yellow throat (several)
White throated sparrow (a few)
Yellow-rump (2)
Northern Parula
Ruby crowned kinglets (a few)
Song Sparrow (several)
Blue jays (2)
House sparrows
Rock doves (of course)
Mourning doves
Double-crested Cormorant (East River)
Northern Juncos Slate variety (2)

I returned and got some shots of his head and bill. Consensus from ebirds advisers is that it is a Virginia Rail.



I walked by the vacant lot which is bounded by 35th and 36th St and between 1st Ave and the FDR. I saw this little bird, pictured above and below. This is the best I could do, as he is behind a chain link fence. I saw a long bill before he tucked his head in.

Cape May
My first time birding Cape May, limited though it was, gave me a taste for the spot. We just spent a short while at Cape May Point State Park but the appeal for birders is immediately obvious. I had my new spotting scope so concentrated on shorebirds and waders, but other birds were so obvious they must have felt slighted that I was paying them no mind. So, many Canada Geese, several mute swans, semi-palmated plover, common terns, Forsters terns, Great Egret, Eastern Kingbird, American Oyster Catcher, a small olive warbler, barn and tree swallows. That's the short list. there were things I never Id's and things I never saw or don't recall. Rather rushed feeling. Beautiful day.

I joined a birding class led by Joe Giunta at Jamaica Bay on Sunday the 17th. I added a number of birds to my life list, and I'll try to set down everything I saw from memory:
Mute Swans
Greater Yellow Legs*
Lesser Yellow Legs*
Least Sandpipers*(above)
Spotted Sandpiper*
Semipalmated Plover*
Semipalmated Sandpiper*
Willet*
Pectoral Sandpiper*
American Oyster Catcher*
Glossy Ibis
Wood Duck*
Short-billed Dowitcher*
Least Fly Catcher
Mallards
American Black Duck
Tri-colored Heron*
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Black Crowned Night Heron
Little Blue Heron
White phase immature blue heron
Green Heron
Snowy Egret
Great Egret
Great Blue Heron
Black Bellied Plover
Common tern
Foster's Tern*
Cedar Waxwing
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Laughing Gull
Boat Tailed Grackle*
American Goldfinch
Mourning Dove
Northern Mockingbird
Osprey
Double-Crested Cormorants
In Transit:
Rock Doves
House Sparrows
40 birds, I think 14 life birds

Yesterday I rode the water taxi to Ikea in Red Hook (Brooklyn). The ride was fun, I love any excuse to be out on the water. The grounds around the store are park-like, with benches, grassy areas and walkways, all river (or estuary) side.
Before I went in the store I checked out the back area and behind a fence, with only small gaps for viewing, was a pond, fringed by reeds and cattails. Barn swallows perched on a wire overhead, and on the pond I caught a glimpse of a bird which I can't ID, but it had a distinctive ring around its bill. A grebe? Not sure; just couldn't get close enough.