At least 1 Prothonotary Warbler was ongoing at Central Park (Manhattan, N.Y. City) with further details below, Sunday, 8/15. As before and as I had noted in previous reports here, there may be a wandering -and/or a 2nd Prothonotary- either moving about from Lake shore into the Ramble at a small stream (known as "The Gill”) and nearby - from various observations again on Sunday. There seem to be no further recent sightings of the species at Turtle Pond - (and as photographed - with a link posted here for a Macaulay Lab archive photo, & credit to the original/first finder-photographer given here, on the day) - where the initial find in Central Park was made on 8/11. And 5th day in a row for this uncommon species in Central, with by now many, many observers.
On Randall’s Island (part of N.Y. County, NYC) early Sunday (8/15), a Cape May Warbler was found & photo’d. (D. Aronov); adding to the modest but somewhat increasing evidence for some of the boreal-breeding songbird / landbird migrants having had a (presumed) good breeding summer, & some early to modestly-early movement south of those kinds of species. Using Cape May Warbler as an example, there are a small no. of much-earlier than typical-early (documented) sightings across NY state & the broader region (all south of where Cape Mays are known to breed) this summer. Other species showing now, or recently (with additional modest no’s. in the broader region, south of where nesting is known) have included Wilson’s, Tennessee, just this Sunday (8/15), Bay-breasted, among warblers that can utilize spruce-budworm as a particular summer food-source in the boreal-breeding range. Also there are the uptick of O.-s. Flycatcher recently (again with documented sightings in the wider region south of known breeding areas), although the latter is a typical August migrant, and, for a further example, the start-up of Ruby-crowned Kinglet fall migration. There are some further examples, some better-documented than others. For further sightings on the day specific to Randall’s Isl. and photo’d. warblers, thanks also to C. Quinn. Also, ’n.b.' - some of the boreal-breeding migrant songbirds, warbler species in particular, are turning up from eastern & western ‘corners’ of NY state, as of this weekend, 8/14 - 8/15. Those few early Palm Warbler sightings from nearby & farther south in the past week or so now look *less* like weird outliers. There were at least ten warbler spp. seen on Randall’s Island and likely more on Sunday 8/15; the reports for other island areas, including Governors Island, may be additionally interesting. .. .. .. .. Central Park & Riverside Park, Manhattan, N.Y. City - Sunday, Aug. 15th - just some of the initial highlights, including some new southbound ‘fall’ arrivals - First N. Shovelers for Manhattan of the ‘fall’ season. Belted Kingfisher numbers have increased. The Chimney Swift passage continues. Yes, also Wood Ducks for Central Park, ongoing. Some of first signs of Broad-winged Hawk migration starting through N.Y. City by 8/14, and some more on 8/15. Also moving were Bald Eagle, Osprey, Turkey Vulture, and other diurnally-migrating species. Eastern Kingbird migration (ongoing!) Far more Ruby-throated Hummingbirds moving, Sunday 8/15. Yellow-shafted Flickers were somewhat increased in areas where not that many nest. Empidonax [genus] Flycatchers, Olive-sided Flycatcher (several), Great Crested Flycatcher (some migrants, plus local breeders). Among the reasonably-identified Empidonax were Least, Willow, and Yellow-bellied Flycatchers, with 2 more as at least ‘possible’. Rather strong movement for the Empidonax, generally. E. Wood-Pewees do breed in N.Y. County, in modest no’s. Yellow-throated Vireo, Red-eyed Vireo (migrants in addition to locally-breeding families), also a further increase of Warbling Vireo (in addition to the many that nest annually in the county). Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, Veery, Swainson’s Thrush, Wood Thrush (although the last breeds on Manhattan in low numbers) - n.b., some of the migrant thrushes, esp. Swainson’s Thrush, confirnmed overnight Sat.-Sun. via ‘NFC’ (nocturnal flight calls), but then further confirmed on the ground in Manhattan, and in other parts of N.Y. City, on Sunday, 8/15. At least one bright Prothonotary Warbler was continuing Sunday (8/15) around the n.w. portion (also known to locals as the “upper lobe”) of The Lake, in Central Park, with the now-confirmed sightings (by others) of 2 of the species *at least in the initial day* of first-fall-appearance in that park thanks to several birders & photographers. With this species, the total number of warblers in N.Y. County on Sunday came to at least 25 species, and that total could rise a bit with later sightings & reports still to come. Of those, a minimum of 22 warbler species were in Central Park as of Sunday. Mourning Warbler, Bay-breasted Warbler, Wilson’s Warbler, Hooded Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Magnolia Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Pine Warbler, Worm-eating Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Blue-winged Warbler, Prairie Warbler, Canada Warbler, Ovenbird, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, Northern Waterthrush, Louisiana Waterhrush, Common Yellowthroat, Yellow Warbler, & N. Parula were among the species. While diversity was excellent, in many cases, numbers were not all that impressive for usually-common migrants and it’s very likely, as is typical, that many overflew the county & perhaps, far beyond N.Y. City on Saturday night’s strong migration movements. Scarlet Tanager, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Indigo Bunting… and yes, some more Bobolinks with the ongoing no’s. of other southbound Icteridae. and more; a more-thorough list in coming days. In addition to the above noted from just 2 well-birded areas (Central, & parts of Riverside Parks), there were migrants in greater numbers being found in a variety of locations in the county, including some just-arrived, for either those locations, or for the county as a whole, this ‘fall’ season. Showing increases (among others) were Chestnut-sided & Canada Warblers, while American Redstart perhaps took over from Yellow Warbler as most-numerous of the migrant warblers. At least 2 Mourning Warblers were present in Central Park, with one sighting in the Ramble and another at that park’s n. end, each with multiple observers. A Bay-breasted Warbler was also in that park’s n. end, with another at Riverside Park, near 108th St. & R. Drive. And, one further ’n.b.' - there’ve been summering White-throated Sparrows in Manhattan, including small no’s. in Central Park thru this summer, which is not unexpected nor unusual for some parts of Manhattan. Additional migrants of a good number of the above species were found in other areas of Manhattan by Sunday, and in other parts of N.Y. City over the weekend, if not seen previously. Not only a good cold-front, but what (stormy) weather was passing by just south of N.Y. City Saturday night, may have factored in to the good drop-ins among the overall strong passage of birds, many of which did get well beyond N.Y. County in the night. Migration was ongoing through Sunday. That included a number of Monarch butterflies and some dragonflies, some on definitive south-to-southwestward movement. good birding to all and thanks to the many observers who added a lot of great sightings. Tom Fiore N.Y. 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