New York County (in N.Y. City) including Manhattan, Randall's, & Governors Island[s] Tues., May 25th through Thursday, May 27th -
On the shift in wind and after evening storms passed through the area on Wed. night, Thursday featured a somewhat broader array of typical May migrants, & while the emphasis continued on the later-moving species, a diversity of migrants were seen around the county. At least 21 warbler species were found in Central Park alone on Thursday, and there also were some warbler species showing in smaller parks & green-spaces that had not been seen (or not much) over prior most-recent days. Some further highlights: Olive-sided Flycatchers, Empidonax [genus] flycatchers including Acadian, Yellow-bellied, & Willow/Alder (sometimes still called "Traill's" to denote the possibility of either one of the 2 preceding species when they are not vocalizing) Flycatchers. However, these species have all been found (in some places, not all locations!) to be singing & seen doing so (eliminating any chances that any person is anywhere playing a song via any devices) by multiple observers in the period of this report. Still the toughest to come by (among the regular five species in the genus Empidonax) at least in N.Y. County (it's seemed - although the species is *not* a rare bird, rather one of the tougher ones to ID here) are (singing) Alder Flycatchers. This species & other flycatchers have received a bit more attention for this week, in part thanks to it being less-busy-looking-for some of the many other migrants, so many of which had been present & in good variety & numbers over recently-past weeks. A modest increase in E. Wood-Pewee song & sightings have also occurred in this report's period. Olive-sided Flycatchers continued in a few locations, including one at the same site where many dozens of birders have found it this week within the Central Park Ramble; others also in other parks. All five of the northeastern-breeding Empidonax species have been found - & documented, with songs heard - in N.Y. County, starting at least by 5/26, and with more observations for more birders by Thurs., 5/27. An Alder Flycatcher which happily remained in the same area from Wed. to Thursday was in the n. end of Central Park, with multiple observers by Thursday (& thanks to L. LaBella for the heads-up to many), while also being seen in that park were Yellow-bellied (& previously seen singing as well), Willow (same comment), & Acadian (same) Flycatchers. The one species that may have almost-all moved on, of the five Empidonax expected is Least Flycatcher, which is also usually the earliest of the genus to arrive in the region. All of these 5 Empidonax have been in other parks as well, and could be in more sites than realized in the county, as the migrations of that genus continue. Also present in at least a few parks have been Olive-sided Flycatchers, and some of them vocal at times (at least calling, if not giving much song). Additionally it can be added that the other NYC counties & their birders have been finding most or all of the preceding flycatcher species this week, if not previously. One of the ‘tougher’ flycatchers to find in late May & on thru summer in N.Y. County can be E. Phoebe, but a few are present. Some of the Empidonax have also been occuring in parks other than Central in N.Y. County, & on the outlying islands of the county. Also coming through have been Mourning Warblers, with at least a few being found -and some singing heard- at times and some views obtained, especially for those patiently, quietly watching and listening. While warblers have certainly thinned out in both diversity and overall numbers, they are still being found in doube-digit species-numbers overall, in the county. Indeed, on Thursday 5/27, at least 22 species of warblers were still in N.Y. County, and of those, at least 21 species were found in Central Park alone on the day. Further, a number of species that are typically less-easy to find by this date, were still being seen in the multiple, in addition to expected later-moving species. Blackpoll Warbler continues as about the most-numerous migrant warbler now, while American Redstart has also been quite numerous. Also still rather numerous & likely represented by some individuals that will linger & attempt to breed in the county are Yellow Warblers, some of which also will go on to very far-north breeding destinations - some birders aren't aware that (some of) that species comes to essentially-Arctic destinations on their full breeding range - in the farthest northeast; (some of) these make it to Labrador (where I've camped among them on willow-flats & ridges, ripe with many biting insects which however also make for lush food for many birds). As we get closer to June, it will be interesting to see what migrants are still coming along. There have been Mourning Warblers (just as one example) still moving through south Texas in the period of this report. There are still as many as a dozen species of migrant warblers which breed in Canada (and/or in the northern portions of eastern U.S.) passing through the U.S. southern states this week, a majority of those not breeding in those (southern-most) states. [And incidentally, while the appearance of multiple Mourning Warblers etc. is a fine day for N.Y. County, a singing male Connecticut Warbler in Centre County, Pennsylvania is a far-rarer thing in the east in spring, at least that "far" east (and that location is not so far south from a broad swath of central N.Y. state). The latter species does make the occasional-&-scarce appearance in spring in the northeastern U.S., and is a typically very late spring migrant - don't stop listening. The Centre County, PA bird was audio-recorded & reported publicly.] An Eastern Bluebird was an unusually-late stop-in at Central Park, back on Saturday, 5/22 (T. Healy) in Central Park. That sighting however was indicative of a fair number of later-lingering migrants or stop-overs running late, for the month of May. There also have been a very few late Hermit Thrush around, although the latter has at least occasionally been found lingering on Manhattan into June (the species breeds in some areas within 50 miles of the county). The dominant migrant thrush hereabouts has been Swainson's Thrush, while a few Veery also were still pushing through, & we have our multiple Wood Thrushes which attempt to nest, hopefully with success, in the county. And the expected later-moving species Gray-cheeked and (at least by likelihood of passage now) Bicknell's Thrush[es] are each moving through, although almost-only the former have been fully-confidently ID'd by any number of observers, the usual situation for the former's (sightings) in this county. On Wed., 5/26, there were at least seven Great Egrets at one portion of the Central Park reservoir’s shore early in the day, & also found there were a fairly high number of Spotted Sandpipers, most of which seemed to have moved on by later the same day; also present were 2 modestly-late Solitary Sandpipers, which were even more skittish and active than the 8+ Spotted SP’s, and were possibly already about to move on by rather early in the day. Depsite a walk of all of the reservoir’s perimeter, no other shorebird species were detected - & the water levels have been high, although the rocky shoreline can nonetheless harbor birds in & around a lot of vegetation. A drake Wood Duck I’ve mentioned previously was continuing at the reservoir in Central, & has been seen & photo’d. as well by many other birders thru this week. Many Cedar Waxwings have been passing through & also stopping in at times. On Wednesday early morning, I watched *one flock of more than 150* come in from north of the park, and come to a tree on the south side of the Meer, in (Manhattan's) Central Park, which was (by far!) the largest single group of the species I have seen so far this year. Also at about the same time, a small group of 5 female Blackpoll Warblers in one tree (also by the Central Park Meer) was a sign of where the migration is getting to in its' May-days wind-down... or is it winding-down? We shall see. In a general way, some of the recently-flowering trees of the area have been productive all this week (and some in preceding days also) with various locust species, Tulip-Poplar, and at least several other trees found in local parks and green-spaces being worth 2nd & 3rd looks. for migrant song (and other) birds. A good many of these kinds of trees are also found a bit off the well-trodden paths of birders, while some are very much-known & are watched by many. In N.Y. County overall, there are still multiple Orchard Orioles, & some of these may stay for nesting - there are a few of that species lingering in Central Park & at more than 2 locations. Baltimore Orioles are set-up for nesting in multiple sites and more may yet do so. We also still have modest no’s. of Scarlet Tanagers, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, & Indigo Buntings in scattered locations. A few of the still-lingering sparrow migrants being found include Swamp as well as Lincoln’s Sparrow; the multiple White-throated Sparrows that are still in various sites in the county might include some that will summer, as happens each year with at least a few of the latter, however with no breeding being inferred at all. And there are a variety of other migrants still passing, and even a few that are certainly running “late” for this county, by now. Below are the warbler species seen in Central Park on Thursday, 5/27: Blue-winged Warbler (one, & a bit late but not unpredentedly so) Tennessee Warbler (still in the multiple, but now with females so less vocal, and rather tricky to find) Nashville Warbler (uncommon now, but more than 2) Northern Parula Yellow Warbler (still in numbers, and some in other parts of the county may also be potential nesters) Chestnut-sided Warbler Magnolia Warbler (still in the many multiple) Cape May Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Blackburnian Warbler Bay-breasted Warbler Blackpoll Warbler (the most-numerous warbler now overall) Black-and-white Warbler American Redstart (still numerous overall) Ovenbird Northern Waterthrush Mourning Warbler (minimum of 4 males present in Central Park, with at least 3 in the north end of that park) Common Yellowthroat (this species has bred or attempted to in the modern era/this century in Central Park) Wilson's Warbler Canada Warbler At least 18 of the above species were found in the Ramble as well as its immediate vicinity such as the s. side of Turtle Pond, the area around the Castle, and along the lake’s shores. Additionally (& not in Central Park) were a few lingering or ‘late’ Yellow-rumped [Myrtle] Warblers, in other locations in the county. None of the above are unpredecently late for the county, although some are certainly well past their peak days of migratory passage for here. A majority of these were in the multiple & in fact just one species - Blue-winged, may have been seen only as a singleton. A number of the above migrant species were still passing through southern states as of this week, and many will be working their way further on northward. good birding to all, 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/ --
