Sunday, 23 April, 2017 A Fieldfare has been lingering at the same area in the state of Maine, U.S.A. - quite a rare visitor to N. America; details & photos are in eBird and on that state’s list & other bird-forums.
———— N.Y. City A Western Cattle Egret continues its now-lengthy stay on the north side of West 28th St., between Eighth & Ninth Avenues, in Manhattan’s (N.Y. City) Chelsea neighborhood into Sunday, April 23rd. - - - - - - - Central Park (Manhattan) has had visiting Wild Turkey previously, but the latest sighting[s] received a bit more attention. The species is a long-time resident in several locations less than 10 miles from Manhattan, and not too many years ago, was also resident (for some years) on Manhattan, esp. at locations at opposite ends, at Battery Park (south end of the island), and at Inwood Hill Park (north end of the island). Of those that have wandered about elsewhere in Manhattan, it’s often been suggested that those individuals may have used the Hudson river corridor, on the island’s west edge, to move south, &/or north, but this may have been only rarely observed. One was present in Central Park from at least Thursday 4/20, as found & reported then by Carolyn Smith in the park’s north end, & (presumed the same single individual) that bird has been working zig-zaggingly but steadily south, to the southern end of the park by Sunday morning. I was able to photograph the turkey at close range this Sun. morning & with no disturbance (one man sleeping on sunny lawn 10 yards away), thousands of tourists passing, seeming unaware of the very large bird just off several heavily-used paths & the park drive near its southwestern extremity. During the time I was observing & photo’ing, no one else was watching, and the turkey was feeding undisturbed by any activities, but that may have been just a short respite from a variety of “risks” a ground-feeding bird is going to encounter in a park such as this; on the other hand, as stated above, this species has been a city-resident, including within Battery Park, which sees millions of people per year (if not per month) passing thru. A Red-necked Grebe at the C.P. reservoir has also lingered; there is no way to accurately determine that this is the bird that was rehabbed & then released there, last winter. However, as the grebe lingers on & on, it seems plausible that it may not have the strength, or ability, to fly properly. If that’s so, hopefully it will be able to, with time. Otherwise, sightings of this bird might go on into & thru the summer. The Red-headed Woodpecker in bright plumage has continued at its usual area just west of East 68th St. in the park, often may be high in trees & sometimes requires a bit of patience to see. On Saturday 4/22, at Central Park, Wood Thrush was newly-noted by multiple observers, although a few birders had tentatively (word-of-mouth) reported this species as early as 4/20; in any case, the species was more-widely seen in multiple NYC parks, in at least several boroughs (counties) of the city, as of Saturday. It had also been found in a few other counties, farther north. Some of the same warblers & other typical mid-April migrants that have been in Central for days are still in some of the same areas as previously. - - - - - - "A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise." - Aldo Leopold (1887–1948), U.S. wildlife biologist, conservationist, professor, author, best known for his book "A Sand County Almanac" (1949), which has sold more than two million copies. peaceful -and ethical- birding, Tom Fiore manhattan -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm 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://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01 Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
