Tom's Summary of Sightings for the last 5 Days

New migrants are arriving today and will continue to arrive during the next week or two,. Here is TOM FIORE's very thorough report of  his Central Park sightings from Sun. 4/12 thru Friday, 17 April 2015:

Palm Warbler  photo by David Speiser

Common Loon (reservoir; breeding plumage, present thru today 4/17)

Pied-billed Grebe (seen earlier in week, reservoir)
Double-crested Cormorant (many, reservoir, etc.)
Great Blue Heron (singles)
Great Egret (multiple)
Snowy Egret (a few low flyovers & 1 or 2 at reservoir on some mornings)
Green Heron (Meer, today, 4/17)
Black-crowned Night-Heron (multiple)
Black Vulture (at least 2 earlier in the week, and the past weekend)
Turkey Vulture (multiple)
Wood Duck (several still around)
Gadwall 
American Black Duck 
Northern Shoveler (few remaining at reservoir)
Bufflehead (fairly good no's. lingering)

Red-breasted Merganser (earlier in week, res.)
Hooded Merganser (several thru at least Wed.)
Ruddy Duck (at least 2 lingering to today, res.)
Osprey (few fly-overs)
Bald Eagle (several fly-overs in the past 6 days)
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Broad-winged Hawk (several, & 1 in park 4/14)
Red-tailed Hawk
American Coot (few at reservoir earlier in week)
Solitary Sandpiper (sunrise; Meer, Thurs. 4/16)
Spotted Sandpiper (several sightings, reservoir)
Laughing Gull (1, reservoir earlier in week, not first of year)
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Mourning Dove
Chimney Swift (very few, from 4/15)
Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Ramble Wed. 4/15)
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (most passed thru now)
Yellow-shafted Flicker (many thru the week)

American Kestrel
Peregrine Falcon
Eastern Phoebe (few; almost none lingering)
Blue-headed Vireo (1 as of 4/14; few more today)
Tree Swallow (earlier in week & prior dates)
N. Rough-winged Swallow (multiple)
Bank Swallow (at least 1 today, Meer, also earlier)
Barn Swallow (multiple, including many fly-overs)
Cliff Swallow (1 today, after missing for 5 days, Meer)
Black-capped Chickadee
Red-breasted Nuthatch (small numbers)
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper (mostly passed thru now)
Carolina Wren
House Wren (1, poss. 2, Ramble & vic.)
Winter Wren (at least several thru the week)

Blue Jay (many)

American Crow

Fish Crow (pr. active across n. end recently)
Golden-crowned Kinglet (few lingering)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (multiple)
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (multiple)
Hermit Thrush (multiple, more expected soon)
Brown Thrasher (more than a few spring arrivals; few had wintered)
Cedar Waxwing (small numbers, so far)

Northern Parula (1 seen singing, Summit Rock, early a.m. today 4/17)
[Myrtle] Yellow-rumped Warbler (modest no's. so far)
Pine Warbler (multiple, esp. in areas in south half of park)
Palm Warbler (many thru week)
Black-and-white Warbler (1 or 2, north end, from 4/14-16)
Northern Waterthrush (singing, from 4/15)
Louisiana Waterthrush (a few continuing)
Common Yellowthroat (at least 2 continuing, modestly early)

Eastern Towhee (many earlier in week & continuing today)
Field Sparrow (small no's. this week)

Chipping Sparrow (fair no's., now diminished)
Savannah Sparrow (few this week)
"red" Fox Sparrow (last seen 4/13?)
Song Sparrow (lingering nesters etc.)
Swamp Sparrow (still modest no's.)
White-throated Sparrow (many migrants, overwintered ones moved on)
Dark-eyed Junco (still a few in north end, 4/17)

Brown-headed Cowbird

Eastern Meadowlark (Monday 4/13, one, Great Lawn)
Rusty Blackbird (several thru week, & most moved on)

Common Grackle

Red-winged Blackbird
Baltimore Oriole (adult male, early, 4/14, n. of reservoir by tennis courts)

Pine Siskin (a few, earlier in week)
Purple Finch (many on passage as fly-thrus, also a few in Ramble area)
American Goldfinch (modest no's.)

Good spring birding,

Tom Fiore,

Manhattan

MURRAY'S LATEST REPORT and PS from JOE

Murray Head, Central Park's star Nature Reporter  is ever on the spot with his camera. Many thanks, Murray. 

Hi Marie,

The Sheep Meadow Nest has been reclaimed by the Red-tails!

(There are eggs, there will be chicks)

Meanwhile In The Ramble...

The Flickers are flying and flirting.

Murray Head

4/16/15

Murray adds: "Spring is everywhere in the park."  Here are the specifics of burgeoning spring , posted on eBirdsNYC today by Joe DiCostanzo:

 My American Museum of Natural History bird walk had about 40 species in the Ramble from 7 – 9 am. Highlights below:

Northern Shoveler (1, the Lake)

Great Egret (1, Turtle Pond)

Black-crowned Night-Heron (3, the Lake)

American Coot (1, the Lake)

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (scattered individuals)

Brown Creeper (1, the Point)

Ruby-crowned Kinglet (scattered everywhere)

Hermit Thrush

Northern Waterthrush (1, singing, the Point)

Yellow-rumped Warbler (2, the Point)

Pine Warbler (5 – 6, se corner Turtle Pond)

Palm Warbler (1, s. side Turtle Pond)

Eastern Towhee (1 male)

Chipping Sparrow (1, feeders)

Swamp Sparrow (2-3)

White-throated Sparrow (singing everywhere)

Brown-headed Cowbird (1, female, feeders)

American Goldfinch (still numbers at the feeders)

Joseph DiCostanzo

Great Gull Island Project - AMNH

AMNH morning walk report

Hermit Thrush --  Photo by LLOYD SPITALNIK

Joe DiCostanzo reports on this morning's American Museum of Natural History walk:

Finally a real spring day for one of my Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist. bird walks. We had about 40 species in the Ramble from 7 – 9 am. Highlights below:

Northern Shoveler (1, the Lake)

Great Egret (2, Turtle Pond and the Lake)

Black-crowned Night-Heron (7, the Lake)

American Coot (1, the Lake)

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (scattered individuals)

Rough-winged Swallow (1, Turtle pond)

Brown Creeper (1, Evodia Field)

Ruby-crowned Kinglet (scattered everywhere)

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (2, sw of Belvedere and the Oven)

Hermit Thrush (1, Turtle Pond)

Yellow-rumped Warbler (several)

Pine Warbler (5 – 6, se corner Turtle Pond)

Palm Warbler (1, s. side Turtle Pond)

Eastern Towhee (3 males, w of Azalea Pond)

Chipping Sparrow (1, feeders)

Swamp Sparrow (2-3)

White-throated Sparrow (singing everywhere)

Brown-headed Cowbird (1, feeders)

Purple Finch (2 males, feeders)

American Goldfinch (still numbers at the feeders)

Joseph DiCostanzo

Great Gull Island Project - AMNH

Letter from Norwegian birdwatcher

Just received [gratefully] the following note from Norwegian birdwatcher Oivind Egeland. He provided the fine photos on this page

Downy Woodpecker [male]

Pine Warbler

,

Northern Flicker

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Hi Marie,

I just wanted to tell you that I have been enjoying your blog over the past few weeks. I am a Norwegian birdwatcher, and I spent this weekend in New York. Going through your blog, especially the posts from mid april over the years, was both an excellent preparation and an inspiration. Birding wasn’t the reason I went to the city, but together with a friend I managed to find the time for two morning strolls in the park. I’ve never really watched birds in the States before, so coming before the major waves of migratory birds arrive was maybe just as well - it gave us the time to identify the birds we saw, and even learn some sounds. The next time, though, I will come one month later, and make birding the number one priority!

We saw pretty much what everyone else saw, and the highlights were the Palm and Pine Warblers. On our last day (April 12th), we counted around 15 pine warblers, mostly males but also a few females, in the east end of Azalea Pond. There were also two or three Palm Warblers among them. I guess at least some of them were new arrivals, and the experience gave us a taste of what is coming over the next month.

Anyway, thank you for a wonderful blog, I will be following you from now on. I’m attaching a few Pictures of Palm and Pine Warblers, a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, a Northern Flicker and a male Downy. Feel free (but not obliged!) to use them for any purpose.

Yours,

 Øivind Egeland