Catching up (2): Randall's ramble

Monday I went up Booby Wagner Walk (the East river walk north of 89th St.) Ward's Island Bridge, all the way around the island, and back down the Wagner Walk, about five miles in all. It was pretty quiet, although I did see a Red-Throated Loon in the east river west of the island, my 74th species in New York County this year.

The salt marsh at the north end of the island was full of Song Sparrows, and I saw an odd dark flat-headed sparrow who flew into the rocks with some Juncos and disappeared. Not sure what that was. It didn't reappear in the half-hour I watched the area.

Catching up: Woodcocks in the Ramble; Spring closing in on Van Cortlandt Park

Sorry for the silence. Saturday, Elena and I went to Central Park. There were two American Woodcocks in the Ramble, just northeast of Azalea Pond. One of them gave us a pretty good look. The Pine Warbler is also still around; I saw it bathing in the Gill just north of Azalea Pond, along with the American Tree Sparrow and a Cedar Waxwing. And the Baltimore Orioles are still at the Evodia feeders.

Sunday we went to the Bronx to visit my aunt who's rehabbing after a hip replacement, and we spent an hour in the southwest part of Van Cortlandt Park. Spring is coming--there were red-Winged Blackbirds calling all over the place, especially in the little freshwater marsh south of the Van Cortlandt mansion. There were also several Titmouse (Titmice? Titmousim?) and Chickadees. Van Cortlandt is the only place either of us has seen Titmouse since last Spring. There was still a lot of snow and ice in the park, and the path south of the Parade Ground was completely flooded in spots (and bordered by very slick ice). I can see why the city wants the Central park conservancy to share some of its resources--Van Cortlandt could really use some help.

Unknown knowns

To the categories of Rumsfeldian epistemology we can add the category of "unknown knowns": things we know without knowing that we know them. Yesterday as I approached Evodia, I saw a sparrow feeding on the ground with the White-Throateds and Juncos. All I saw from that distance was the shape and distinct white wingbars (one low and bold, one high and short and thin), but I immediately thought, "hey, the American Tree Sparrow is back". And so it was.



I hadn't known that the wingbars were a good field mark for that sparrow.

I also saw a Rusty Blackbird just west of Azalea Pond:



But I knew right off what that was and why.

P.S. Googling around, I found a nice recent blog post about American Tree Sparrow identification t birdaz.com: http://birdaz.com/blog/2014/02/27/how-many-wing-bars/.

More things I hadn't seen before.

Every time I go out birding, I see something I haven't seen before. Monday, there was a Cooper's Hawk around at Evodia in the Ramble. It was pretty restless, kept switching perches every few minutes. Eventually it moved off past Azalea Pond toward the pin oak swamp.

A little later, a Red-Tailed Hawk flew in, a little east of Evodia. He was a very pale morph, possibly Pale Male himself, though he seemed like a younger (and even paler) bird. he sat fairly low in a tree, giving a good view.

After a few minutes, I saw the Cooper's flying low and fast north from Azalea Pond. The Red-Tailed took off after him! I got my binoculars on the Cooper's and saw it had a bird in it's talons--probably a Starling, maybe a small Grackle. The hawks disappeared over Tupelo Meadow, heading toward Belvedere Castle. The Red-Tailed was in surprisingly close pursuit.

I think the Red-Tailed figured the Cooper's would be slowed down from carrying off prey, and the he had a chance to harass it enough to make it drop its meal. Anyway, I'd never seen that before.

There was a Carolina Wren at Evodia--I'm not sure if the rescued wren was released already or if this was another bird. Word is the rescue was just dehydrated and will be fine. Another Carolina was near Willow Rock; didn't spot the Woodcock in the Oven. I was told the Pine Warbler was over at the Upper Lobe in the morning, but I didn't see it, though two Black-Capped Chickadees and a Brown Creeper were there.

later, I saw two Red-Tailed Hawks soaring over Central Park West around 81st Street. I thought it might be a mating flight, and watched for a while. Suddenly the male dove toward the building on the corner, flushing out another male Red-Tailed. It looked like he might actually have hit the third hawk. The female joined in the pursuit, and the three disappeared southwest behind the Museum of Natural History.

So that's two new things.

Counting

I forgot to mention the other day, the Pine Warbler, Woodcock, and Red-Winged Blackbirds on Sunday get me to 73 species in New York County this year, and 74 overall.

"Spring is coming!" "He is?"

Elena and I went to Central Park today.  We were particularly looking for the very early Pine Warbler that has been reported recently and for the American Woodcock reported in the Oven yesterday, which would be year birds for both of us.  The Woodcock especially is infrequent in the Park, and not common for New York in general.  Also we hoped for the American Tree Sparrow who has been seen around Evodia lately, which I have seen but Elena had not; and for Red-Winged Blackbirds, quite common but neither of us had seen any this year.

Well, we got them all.

First, we saw Cedar Waxwings between Maintenance and the Gill source.  Next, the Pine Warbler was practically the first bird we saw when we got to Evodia.  It was bouncing around on the ground just a few feet from the fence on the south side of the field.



Later the American Tree Sparrow showed up, and the female Baltimore Oriole who's been around all winter (didn't see the male today), and also a Rusty Blackbird,



and several Brown Creepers, and the other usual birds.  I could hear male Red-Winged Blackbirds going off all over the place, but none were in sight.

We went for a walk around Willow Rock (we didn't spot the Woodcock) the Riviera (nice bunch of Song Sparrows), and the Pin Oak swamp (nothin'), then returned to Evodia where Kevin (a very good birder) told us he had in fact seen the Woodcock at the Oven, and kindly led a small group over to see it.  With his help, we got a nice view:



Eventually we went back to Evodia, where the RWBBs finally came out before being flushed by our final first-of-season sighting:  an entitled asshole letting his dog run off leash.  Spring is coming!

First RWBB of the year

an oldie (3 April 2010): Red-Winged Blackbird calling

I've been sporadically birding in the southwest part of Van Cortlandt Park and a small nearby park called Brust Park, because my aunt is in a nursing home in the vicinity (rehabbing after a hip replacement). So I was in Van Cortlandt in the late afternoon today.

It was pretty quiet. I went up behind the Golf House, but there wasn't anything there but a single Downy Woodpecker. On my way back, I passed a small phragmites marsh south of the Van Cortlandt Mansion. There was a mixed group of sparrows--White-Throated, Junco, one Song--which scattered as a juvenile Cooper's Hawk came out of the marsh and perched low in a tree.

As I left the park, I heard a familiar check-check-SCREEEE call, and scanned the trees. A Red-Winged Blackbird was at the top of one tree; my first of the year. People have been reporting them in Central Park over the past week, but I haven't see any there yet.

Cooper's Hawk and Red-Winged Blackbird make 30 species in the Bronx this year for me. The RWBB is my 72nd species overall this year (that and Tufted Titmouse I've only had in the Bronx this year).