TOM FIORE's Wednesday report

Prairie Warbler, male

Wednesday May 26, 2016

Yellow-breasted Chat (Strawberry Fields, & thanks to Chris Cooper!)

Tennessee Warbler (non-singing, n. woods)
Northern Parula (at least 5 heard, a few add'l. seen)
Yellow Warbler (multiple males & females, seen & h.)
Chestnut-sided Warbler (modest no's. of fem. & male)
Magnolia Warbler (good double-digit no's. of each sex)
Cape May Warbler (female, NW reservoir-bridle path - N.B. - males are still being seen by other birders)
Black-throated Blue Warbler (more females than male - but males still being seen in no's.)
Yellow-rumped [Myrtle] Warbler (scarce but still around)
Black-throated Green Warbler (at least 2, each sex)
Blackburnian Warbler (female, n. woods - N.B. - multiple males are being seen elesewhere)
Prairie Warbler (female, Great Hill, west edge, 9:15 a.m.)
Bay-breasted Warbler (females, N. End n. of Blockhouse - N.B. - males are still being seen elsewhere)
Blackpoll Warbler (multiple in many locations, both sexes)
Black-and-white Warbler (I noticed just 2, one of each sex)
American Redstart (prob. most numerous warbler of day = 100 +++)
Worm-eating Warbler ("late" but not unprecedently, Ramble, SE sector)
Ovenbird (not a whole lot & many, not all were silent, presumed females)
Northern Waterthrush (singing at "oven", & seen in a few other locations)
Mourning Warbler (Strawberry Fields, also definitively at Loch-W'flower Meadow - NB - also being seen elsewhere, by others!!)
Common Yellowthroat (prob. 2nd-most numerous warbler species this day; many females & 1st-year males, adult males also!)
Wilson's Warbler (at least several, some quite high - 15-20 ft. while foraging - Ramble, n. woods, etc.)
Canada Warbler (multiple but not all that many, both sexes)

Other migrant & "visiting" species present today Wed. 5/25:

Double-crested Cormorant
Great Egret
Snowy Egret (the usual n. end fly-overs)
Green Heron
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Gadwall
Mallard
Red-tailed Hawk (including the adult sitting in center of Sheep Meadow lawn, as a CP mower-machine driver had to circle around it)
American Kestrel
Peregrine Falcon
Spotted Sandpiper (reservoir)
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull (reservoir)
Great Black-backed Gull (reservoir)
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Yellow-billed Cuckoo (at least one, n. woods, n. of Blockhouse)
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Yellow-shafted Flicker 

Olive-sided Flycatcher (several, Ramble & n. woods areas)
Eastern Wood-Pewee (still in extremely minimal numbers, we will see if more show in Central)
Empidonax [genus] Flycatchers (more than several, including Acadian Flycatcher heard in the Ramble, n. section, but mostly not heard, or not studied well this a.m., however some that were 'likely' included Least and "Willow-Alder types".)
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird (nest areas & etc.)
Warbling Vireo (many, nest areas etc.)
Philadelphia Vireo (west of the Castle, seen singing & moving about a bit)
Red-eyed Vireo (many, a fresh "push" of these, again in all areas of the park this day)
Blue Jay
American Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow (esp. at reservoir)
Barn Swallow (over Sheep Meadow, N. Meadow, Meer, & esp. reservoir)
Black-capped Chickadee (several on several territories)
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren (1, heard)
House Wren (at many nesting territories)
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (at nest territories)
Veery (2 seen, Ramble & n. woods)
Gray-cheeked Thrush (multiple, at least 1 singing - 

with a possibility at this time of Bicknell's, but none fully definitive which would entail hearing one sing)
Swainson's Thrush (many, including 15+ in Ramble, & 40+ in n. end, esp. n. woods)
Wood Thrush (several on nest territories)
American Robin
Gray Catbird (many)
Northern Mockingbird
Brown Thrasher (in nest areas)
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing (multiple in small to modest flocks)
Scarlet Tanager (multiple males seen & heard, incl. at: Hallett Sanctuary area, Pinetum center area, n.w. part of res./bridle path, n. woods; also multiple females)

Eastern Towhee (location undisclosed, a poss. nester - scarce as such in C.P.)
Chipping Sparrow (near nest territories)
Song Sparrow (several, regular nester)
Lincoln's Sparrow (1 seen)
Swamp Sparrow (1 seen)
White-throated Sparrow (several, a scarce 'summering' species in Central & other NYC locations)
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak (modest no's. including at least a few singing males)
Indigo Bunting (1 male seen)
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole (lingering 1st-year male, will be watched in coming days)
Baltimore Oriole (many including multiple at nest areas)
House Finch
American Goldfinch (uncommon but still present)
House Sparrow 

...........

A Rare Visitor for Mother's Day

TODAY!  In Central Park!! A Chuck-Will's Widow

Anders Peltomaa posted a report on ebirdsNYC, and a link to a photo of today's bird. But I was unable to copy that picture to this site. SO…here is a photo of another Chuck Will's Widow, one that visited the park 8 years ago:

Chuck Will's Widow
Photo by David Speiser -- 2008  Central Park



Meanwhile, there were quite a few other birds!  Here is TOM FIORE's report for Central Park today:

Mother's Day Sunday, 8 May, 2016

A very big (impressive even for some who've been at this spring migration watch for some years) migration took place overnight Sat. into Sunday and some flight was still ongoing through the mid-day (& could well keep going still for some sorts of migrants) in Manhattan and clearly all around the greater region, perhaps a bit less so on the most eastern sections of the region (?),

and in Manhattan's Central Park alone, more than 100 species of birds have already been found, by a whole lot of observers combining, & with efforts in all corners of the park... the borough has the potential of adding at least a dozen, perhaps 2 dozen more species to that "century" mark by day's end, given the volume & good diversity that is being found.

A putative Chuck-will's-widow is a candidate for "bird-of-the-day" in Central - and yes, an American Bittern also in the Ramble area is a very good find for this park... as are the at least 2 dozen species of Warblers, the at least 5 species of Vireos, the at least 5 species of Catharus [genus] Thrushes, the at least 4 species of Wrens, the at least 9 species of Sparrows (very late "red" Fox being possibly the least-likely to get at this date in May), the 2 spp. of Orioles, 2 spp. of Tanagers, & much, much more.

There are really great numbers of many, many species - one example being more than 30 Wood Thrush in Central, and that's just from one active observer going all thru the park this a.m. (myself); a Wood Thrush singing beautifully even out at the Columbus Circle monument is certainly not where that species is typical - but today is un-typical (!)

good birding & if mom's out birding too, she ought to be happy with this day,

Tom Fiore
Manhattan

SIXTEEN SPECIES OF WARBLER REPORTED IN CENTRAL PARK TODAY [4/30]!

Here's one of them:

Prairie Warbler

Blue-headed Video and PS from Marie

Blue-headed Video??

Jonathan Perez writes today: 

Good to see new arrivals today in CP.

There was a male Baltimore Oriole confirmed by three other birders near Oak Bridge, a Black and White Warbler, Yellow Rumped Warbler in the ramble and Northern Waterthrush.

Fly by- Great blue heron was a pleasant sight. A red tail had nesting materials as well - taking care of business.

Please excuse my brevity. Sent from my iPhone

9:35 AM, Michael Zito <michaelzito@gmail.com> wrote:

Also seen blue headed video .

Sent from my iPhone

PS from Marie: Was the Blue-headed video an app on the iPhone?

Tom's report for early this morning

Blue-headed Vireo--Audubon Field Guide
www.Audubon.org

Tues. 19 April, 2016
migration in progress N.Y. City area & surrounds (lots more birds)

Some pretty decent migration took place in portions of southeast NY last night into this Tuesday morning. It won't be surprising to see new-for-year species in some of the NY City parks & wild areas, as well as the multiple counties in & near the region.  The increasing NW winds also may actually produce a few unexpected results for those with an eye to the sky...

Some further fresh arrival after Monday's push of certain species, from the wilds of Central Park this Tuesday morning.  With more neotropical-wintering species starting to appear, any no. of possibilities are out there.  A couple of Vireo species (Warbling, Blue-headed, White-eyed) are examples, although it's really the Warbling Vireo that indicates the 'neo-trop.' push... & many of the migrants are ongoing shorter-distance species such as the other 2 vireo spp. noted, & Pine & Yellow-rumped Warblers, E. Towhees, multiple Sparrow spp., as well as some Purple Finches & others.

more later,

good luck,
Tom Fiore
Manhattan