Tuesday, 2 October, 2012 - Central Park, Manhattan, N.Y. City Interesting day for ongoing movement as well as a modest and possibly widespread drop-in from the night before. Overall numbers of some common and expected migrants were up, including Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Yellow-shafted Flicker, E. Phoebe, Blue-headed Vireo, Brown Creeper, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and in the northern half of the park, at least, Yellow-rumped [Myrtle] Warbler, along with other later-moving warblers, and sparrows including Lincoln's, Swamp, and White-throated Sparrow, as well as fair numbers of Chipping Sparrow. Of fly-by flocks, there were far more Cedar Waxwings moving over than on any recent days (500+ in the mid-morning hours alone), as well as some blackbird movement that included at least a few Baltimore Orioles, lots of Brown-headed Cowbirds, and also Common Grackles. American Goldfinch came through as did a small number of Purple Finch, and at least 2 Pine Siskins spent a short time feeding in the wildflower meadow quite late in the day, with many more goldfinches, the siskins even more skittish than their brighter relatives & all birds flushing up, or as likely down in the high vegetation of the meadow with a young Cooper's Hawk menacing, perhaps the same that has been in that area recently. At least 18 species of warblers were noted in the park overall as far as I've heard, & it's very possible that a few more were seen today by those out before or between the rain. Damp weather can often provide birding in some places that equals or betters that done on beautiful clear-blue days. I saw migrants in some areas of the park that are generally only productive of a variety or number of species soon after a fairly heavy migration event - in trees and on the grass near the N.Meadow ballfields (on all sides), as well as the area surrounding the tennis courts, and of course in some of the better-known usual places that have been productive in the north end of the park. A quick look in a few spots south of 72 Street much later also showed that some migrants were scattered around much of the park. And a quick look in the southern parts of Riverside Park indicated that at least some migrants also had been coming thru there, as compared with the few seen less than 24 hours earlier.
Good birding, Tom Fiore, Manhattan -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
