Central Park with Tian
Manhattan, NYC
Saturday 26 October 2019
63 °F
Today, after a successful audition for the Chautauqua Institution’s summer vocal program, my girlfriend joined me for a fun late afternoon & evening in Central Park!
Upon arriving to our picnic spot near the 96th St Traverse, I noticed a wealth of songbirds around the area including many CHIPPING SPARROWS:
And YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS:
And a couple of DARK-EYED JUNCOS:
A YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER foraged nearby:
Then, we headed north and soon were near the Central Park Pool (actually a stagnant pond) where there were GADWALL with the usual MALLARDS:
The nearby foliage was outstanding:
And there was quite a nice pocket of songbirds including a WHITE-THROATED SPARROW:
And a plethora of RUBY-CROWNED KINGLETS, including this male who was friendly enough to show us a sliver of his scarlet crown:
Best of all, yet another late BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER was in the area — the number of this species I have seen this fall is pretty remarkable, and I am certainly not complaining! October 27 is definitely getting on the late side for this beautiful species.
Continuing north onto the Great Hill, we found a lone SONG SPARROW:
And the North Woods in the far northwest corner of the park, though beautiful, was pretty devoid of humans & birds alike, save for this HERMIT THRUSH:
What a peaceful way to spend an afternoon! Bird-of-the-day to the Black-throated Blue Warbler with runner-up to an American Kestrel who unsuccessfully dive-bombed a bunch of Chipping Sparrows at one point. Honorable mention to Tian who put up with my thorough birding throughout the afternoon like a champ.
Good birding,
Henry
World Life List: 978 Species
