Registrar: Debbie Mullins Participants: 15 Weather: Sunny, winds calm, high 80s-low 90s F Bird Species: 46
We thank Amy and Phil for their expert leadership of this trip. Their keen eyes and ears enabled us to see or hear an amazing 46 bird species, as well as several herps, butterflies and dragonflies.
We set out early, at 8:00 am, to focus on morning birdsong. We started at the Ironwood Drive parking area, crossed the stream, and walked north along the power line cut. Prairie Warblers sang all around us, and a very vocal Eastern Towhee begged for attention, but our target bird, the Golden-winged Warbler, eluded us initially. After patiently looking and listening for about two hours, we finally heard it sing–zeee-bee-bee-bee! Unfortunately, we never saw it and had to settle for listing the Golden-winged Warbler as a “heard only” species. Other highlights of the morning included a soaring Red-shouldered Hawk, a flying Pileated Woodpecker, multiple Indigo Buntings, a Scarlet Tanager and four additional warbler species.
Around noon we went to the Sterling Forest Visitor Center on Old Forge Road, where we had lunch on the porch. Barn Swallows, a House Wren, Chipping Sparrows, Brown-headed Cowbirds, and a Northern Cardinal were spotted there.
The trip officially ended after lunch, but eight people returned to Ironwood Drive to try again to see the Golden-winged Warbler. Although we dipped on the Golden-winged Warbler, we were rewarded by hearing a Yellow-billed Cuckoo and seeing a Yellow-throated Vireo and a singing male Cerulean Warbler.
Species Lists
Birds Mourning Dove Yellow-billed Cuckoo Ruby-throated Hummingbird Double-crested Cormorant Great Blue Heron Green Heron Black Vulture Turkey Vulture Sharp-shinned Hawk Cooper’s Hawk Red-shouldered Hawk Red-tailed Hawk Belted Kingfisher Pileated Woodpecker Eastern Wood-Pewee Eastern Phoebe Great Crested Flycatcher Eastern Kingbird Yellow-throated Vireo Warbling Vireo Red-eyed Vireo Blue Jay Tufted Titmouse Northern Rough-winged Swallow Barn Swallow House Wren European Starling Gray Catbird American Robin Cedar Waxwing American Goldfinch Chipping Sparrow Eastern Towhee Baltimore Oriole Red-winged Blackbird Brown-headed Cowbird Common Grackle Golden-winged Warbler Blue-winged Warbler American Redstart Cerulean Warbler Yellow Warbler Prairie Warbler Scarlet Tanager Northern Cardinal Indigo Bunting
Herps Eastern Garter Snake Rat Snake Common Snapping Turtle Eastern Painted Turtle Gray Tree Frog
Thank you, Ken, for opening our eyes to the natural world that surrounds us and teaching us about the ecology of Van Cortlandt Park. Ecology is defined as the relationships among organisms. Each species finds its niche. We learned about the food producers (plants), the consumers (mainly animals), and the decomposers (fungi, certain insects, and more). This walk was an outdoor class. Paper and pen were important. Thank you also to Mike Freeman, who joined Ken in pointing out insects on today’s walk. Mike is a detective of the fascinating world of the tiny—the insects and their relatives.
We entered the park at the south end of the parade grounds, and the lesson began. We studied the difference between beetle and bug: beetles chew with their mandibles, while true bugs use a piercing and sucking mouthpiece to siphon nutrients. In proper ecological settings these insects are beneficial. Some pollinate; some decompose organic matter; and some, like the Ladybird Beetle, consume aphids. Our lists of the insects, arachnids, and other invertebrates seen are quite extensive.
Butterflies, moths, and odonates are fascinating insects. Van Cortlandt Park is one of the few sites in NYC where one can see the Silvery Checkerspot, a small, beautiful butterfly that breeds there. This year we did not find one, but we did see Red-banded Hairstreaks, which are also beautiful. The odonates, which consume mosquitoes and other insect prey, were abundant. We watched a Skimming Bluet, an Orange Bluet, a Common Basketball, and many other fascinating odonates.
We also compiled an extensive plant list, including trees, shrubs, bushes, flowers, and more. Many invertebrates have relationships with specific host plants. We did not neglect birds; because of the park’s rich food sources, many bird species nest in Van Cortlandt Park’s woodlands, wetlands, grasses, and shrubs. What fun it was to watch and listen to nesting Willow Flycatchers, Great-crested Flycatchers, Warbling Vireos, and Baltimore Orioles in an urban environment!
This little report only touches the surface of the rich diversity of this unique urban park. Ken informed us that he often finds uncommon species of invertebrates that live in Van Cortlandt Park. I wonder what revelations we will experience in our next walk.
Species
Birds Canada Goose Wood Duck Mallard Rock Pigeon Mourning Dove Chimney Swift Double-crested Cormorant Green Heron Turkey Vulture Osprey Red-tailed Hawk Northern Flicker Eastern Wood-Pewee Willow Flycatcher Great Crested Flycatcher Eastern Kingbird Warbling Vireo Red-eyed Vireo Blue Jay Tufted Titmouse Tree Swallow House Wren Carolina Wren European Starling Gray Catbird Northern Mockingbird Wood Thrush American Robin House Sparrow American Goldfinch Song Sparrow Baltimore Oriole Red-winged Blackbird Brown-headed Cowbird Common Grackle Yellow Warbler Scarlet Tanager Northern Cardinal
Fungus etc. Honeycomb Coral Slime Mold (Ceratiomyxa fruticulosa) Brittle Cinder (Kretzschmaria deusta) Cracked Cap Polypore (Fulvifomes robinae) Dryad’s Saddle (Cerioporus squamosus) Mica Cap (Coprinellus micaceus)
Trees European Linden Red Oak White Oak Silver Maple Norway Maple Sassafras Umbrella Magnolia Hackberry Horse Chestnut Tree Bitternut Hickory Tuliptree Cottonwood London Plane Tree Staghorn Sumac Ailanthus
Registrar: Steve Holleran Participants: 40 Weather: Mostly sunny, warming to the mid 70’s Bird Species: 52
Forty participants in four groups joined in our final walk of the series and together observed a total of 52 bird species, with 10 warblers. Nesting sites for many of our resident birds were also seen, including Cedar Waxwings, Eastern Kingbirds, Common Grackles, Warbling Vireos, and Northern Flickers.
A successful season was celebrated among old and new friends in a lunchtime gathering at the Boat House.
Species Lists
Birds Canada Goose Wood Duck Gadwall Mallard Rock Pigeon Mourning Dove Black-billed Cuckoo Chimney Swift Ring-billed Gull Herring Gull Great Black-backed Gull Double-crested Cormorant Great Egret Black-crowned Night-Heron Red-tailed Hawk Red-bellied Woodpecker Downy Woodpecker Northern Flicker Olive-sided Flycatcher Eastern Wood-Pewee Yellow-bellied Flycatcher Great Crested Flycatcher Eastern Kingbird Warbling Vireo Red-eyed Vireo Blue Jay Tufted Titmouse White-breasted Nuthatch European Starling Gray Catbird Northern Mockingbird Swainson’s Thrush American Robin Cedar Waxwing House Sparrow House Finch White-throated Sparrow Baltimore Oriole Red-winged Blackbird Common Grackle Northern Waterthrush Black-and-white Warbler Common Yellowthroat American Redstart Northern Parula Magnolia Warbler Chestnut-sided Warbler Blackpoll Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Canada Warbler Scarlet Tanager Northern Cardinal
Butterflies Cabbage White Mourning Cloak Red Admiral Question Mark
Registrar: Steve Holleran Participants: 59 Weather: Mostly sunny, warming to the low 80’s Bird Species: 64
With the spring migration beginning to wind down, our 59 participants, in 6 separate groups, still managed to observe a combined total of 64 species, including 13 warblers. Flycatchers were also well represented, with the Olive-sided, Yellow-bellied and Great Crested all showing up, as well as Eastern Kingbirds and Eastern Wood-Pewees.
Species Lists
Birds Canada Goose Gadwall Mallard Rock Pigeon Mourning Dove Chimney Swift Ring-billed Gull Herring Gull Great Black-backed Gull Double-crested Cormorant Great Egret Black-crowned Night-Heron Red-tailed Hawk Barred Owl Red-bellied Woodpecker Downy Woodpecker Northern Flicker American Kestrel Peregrine Falcon Olive-sided Flycatcher Eastern Wood-Pewee Yellow-bellied Flycatcher Great Crested Flycatcher Eastern Kingbird Warbling Vireo Red-eyed Vireo Blue Jay American Crow Black-capped Chickadee Barn Swallow White-breasted Nuthatch European Starling Gray Catbird Northern Mockingbird Veery Gray-cheeked Thrush Swainson’s Thrush Hermit Thrush American Robin Cedar Waxwing House Sparrow House Finch White-throated Sparrow Song Sparrow Orchard Oriole Baltimore Oriole Red-winged Blackbird Common Grackle Ovenbird Northern Waterthrush Black-and-white Warbler Common Yellowthroat Hooded Warbler American Redstart Northern Parula Magnolia Warbler Bay-breasted Warbler Blackburnian Warbler Blackpoll Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Canada Warbler Scarlet Tanager Northern Cardinal Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Registrar: Mary Beth Kooper Report by: Tod Winston Participants: 14 Weather: Overcast, 73 degrees Bird Species: 56
We had a luckily-not-THAT-hot morning at the Shawangunk Grasslands National Wildlife Refuge. We quickly heard and spotted the major grassland specialties we sought, among the many Red-winged Blackbirds. We found plentiful singing male Bobolinks (“the gladdest bird that sings and flies,” according to poet John Burroughs), and got nice views of a couple subtler but also beautiful females. We distinguished the buzzy songs of several Savannah Sparrows from the even buzzier sound of Grasshopper Sparrows (both primary and secondary songs), which thankfully popped up and showed themselves several times during the walk. The clear, slurred cry of the Eastern Meadowlark was heard all morning, and a few of these birds posed atop posts for us.
Several striking Eastern Bluebirds were nesting in the refuge boxes, as were many Tree Swallows. We also saw a pair of American Kestrels standing guard near their box; we were told that this was one of five pairs nesting this year. Along our walk through the grasslands, we also encountered some woodland and scrub birds at the edge: a singing Yellow Warbler, a Warbling Vireo, a Tufted Titmouse, an Eastern Wood-Pewee… and a Yellow-billed Cuckoo that allowed us good glimpses as it foraged. We then escaped the heat and birded the refuge drive and nearby pond. Highlights included a quick view of a Scarlet Tanager and a cooperative pair of Orchard Orioles–and our determination was rewarded when we tracked down an unexpected singing Alder Flycatcher (FeeBEo!) and a Blue-winged Warbler.
A quick stop at nearby Blue Chip Farms didn’t net us much more (though the young horses were cute)… but our third and final stop, the Liberty Loop Trail of Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge (in Pine Island), didn’t disappoint. Sharp eyes in the group spotted a male Wood Duck and a Common Gallinule (whose nasal cackling we continued to hear)… and then we found, popping out of the marshes to our left, the heads of our main quarry! A pair of Sandhill Cranes turned out to be chaperoning a small, orange-colored chick. We hiked to the eastern side of the trail and eventually got nice views of the pair, and fleeting views of the much smaller young one. (By the way, it seems that a Sandhill Crane nest looks quite similar to a Muskrat lodge. AND, apparently, Sandhill Cranes frequently nest on top of old Muskrat lodges! I suspect we saw several Muskrat lodges yesterday in Liberty Marsh. As to whether one was the cranes’ nest… well, you’ve got me.)
Along our way we heard but did not see several secretive, furiously singing Marsh Wrens, a second singing American Redstart for the day, and at least one calling Virginia Rail (“kiddick, kiddick…”)—but did see several singing Swamp Sparrows, along with a distant Pied-billed Grebe. A singing Willow Flycatcher (Fitz-BEW!) capped off the trip, providing the counterpart to our earlier Alder Flycatcher. (These two very similar species were once considered one—the “Traill’s Flycatcher”–and must be heard to be distinguished from one another in the field.)
Species Lists
Birds Canada Goose Wood Duck Mallard Wild Turkey Pied-billed Grebe Mourning Dove Yellow-billed Cuckoo Ruby-throated Hummingbird Virginia Rail Common Gallinule Sandhill Crane Great Blue Heron Great Egret Turkey Vulture Buteo sp. Northern Flicker American Kestrel Eastern Wood-Pewee Alder Flycatcher Willow Flycatcher Eastern Kingbird Warbling Vireo Blue Jay American Crow Tufted Titmouse Tree Swallow Barn Swallow House Wren Carolina Wren European Starling Gray Catbird Northern Mockingbird Eastern Bluebird Wood Thrush American Robin Cedar Waxwing American Goldfinch Grasshopper Sparrow Chipping Sparrow Field Sparrow Savannah Sparrow Song Sparrow Swamp Sparrow
Plants Bird’s Foot Trefoil Field Pennycress Leafy Spurge Ragged-robin Tufted Vetch or Cow Vetch
This morning was one of those spring migration days when you could sense the excitement in the air and feel the joy of the birders on seeing so many beautiful migrants. As you can see from the bird list below and the photographs, it was a morning that well rewarded those birders who rose early and headed into Central Park.
Species Lists
Birds Canada Goose Mallard Rock Pigeon Mourning Dove Black-billed Cuckoo Chimney Swift Ring-billed Gull Herring Gull Great Black-backed Gull Double-crested Cormorant Great Egret Black-crowned Night-Heron Red-tailed Hawk Barred Owl Red-bellied Woodpecker Downy Woodpecker Northern Flicker Eastern Wood-Pewee Great Crested Flycatcher Eastern Kingbird Blue-headed Vireo Warbling Vireo Red-eyed Vireo Blue Jay American Crow Black-capped Chickadee White-breasted Nuthatch Veery Swainson’s Thrush American Robin Gray Catbird Northern Mockingbird European Starling Cedar Waxwing House Sparrow House Finch Field Sparrow White-throated Sparrow Baltimore Oriole Red-winged Blackbird Common Grackle Ovenbird Northern Waterthrush Black-and-white Warbler Prothonotary Warbler Tennessee Warbler Common Yellowthroat Hooded Warbler American Redstart Cape May Warbler Northern Parula Magnolia Warbler Bay-breasted Warbler Blackburnian Warbler Yellow Warbler Chestnut-sided Warbler Blackpoll Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Canada Warbler Wilson’s Warbler Scarlet Tanager Northern Cardinal Indigo Bunting
Registrar: Anne Lazarus Registered Participants: 16 Weather: Sunny, 50-upper 60’s F Bird Species: 59
We thank our excellent leaders, Rick, Alice and Miriam for finding and identifying many beautiful birds. Doodletown, with its woodlands, streams, grasses and flowers is a major attraction for many bird species. It hosts nesting Hooded Warblers, Cerulean Warblers, Worm-eating Warblers, Yellow-throated Vireos, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Orchard Orioles, Pileated Woodpeckers and many more. Migrating birds are also attracted to this ecological gem, including the Olive-sided Flycatcher. We saw and heard all of them (Pileated heard). We also monitored the sky for raptors and saw several, including Red-shouldered and Broad-winged Hawks, a Bald Eagle and an Osprey. From the tiny Ruby-throated Hummingbird to the large Pileated Woodpecker, many species find that Doodletown’s diverse habitat offers a welcoming niche.
Species Lists
Birds Canada Goose Ruby-throated Hummingbird Black Vulture Turkey Vulture Osprey Bald Eagle Red-shouldered Hawk Broad-winged Hawk Red-bellied Woodpecker Downy Woodpecker Hairy Woodpecker Pileated Woodpecker Olive-sided Flycatcher Eastern Wood-Pewee Great Crested Flycatcher Eastern Kingbird White-eyed Vireo Yellow-throated Vireo Warbling Vireo Red-eyed Vireo Blue Jay American Crow Black-capped Chickadee Tufted Titmouse Northern Rough-winged Swallow Tree Swallow Barn Swallow Ruby-crowned Kinglet Blue-gray Gnatcatcher European Starling Gray Catbird Veery Wood Thrush American Robin House Sparrow American Goldfinch Chipping Sparrow White-throated Sparrow Song Sparrow Swamp Sparrow Orchard Oriole Baltimore Oriole Red-winged Blackbird Brown-headed Cowbird Common Grackle Ovenbird Worm-eating Warbler Blue-winged Warbler Hooded Warbler American Redstart Cape May Warbler Cerulean Warbler Yellow Warbler Blackpoll Warbler Prairie Warbler Scarlet Tanager Northern Cardinal Rose-breasted Grosbeak Indigo Bunting
Herps Five-lined Skink
Butterflies Spicebush Swallowtail Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Cabbage White Azure (sp) Pearl Crescent American Lady Juvenal’s Duskywing Wild Indigo Duskywing
Eighty-nine bird species, including 21 warbler species, were collectively observed by 72 birders on Linnaean’s Tuesday morning walk. Participants were divided among seven groups (following Linnaean’s COVID guidelines that limit group numbers to 10 people).
Species Lists
Birds Canada Goose Mallard Rock Pigeon Mourning Dove Chimney Swift Ruby-throated Hummingbird Solitary Sandpiper Laughing Gull Ring-billed Gull Herring Gull Great Black-backed Gull Double-crested Cormorant Great Egret Green Heron Black-crowned Night-Heron Red-tailed Hawk Barred Owl Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Red-bellied Woodpecker Downy Woodpecker Northern Flicker Merlin Peregrine Falcon Great Crested Flycatcher Eastern Kingbird Eastern Wood-Pewee Blue-headed Vireo Warbling Vireo Red-eyed Vireo Blue Jay American Crow Northern Rough-winged Swallow Barn Swallow Black-capped Chickadee Tufted Titmouse White-breasted Nuthatch House Wren Carolina Wren Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Ruby-crowned Kinglet Veery Swainson’s Thrush Hermit Thrush Wood Thrush American Robin Gray Catbird Northern Mockingbird European Starling Cedar Waxwing House Sparrow House Finch American Goldfinch Chipping Sparrow Field Sparrow White-crowned Sparrow White-throated Sparrow Savannah Sparrow Swamp Sparrow Eastern Towhee Orchard Oriole Baltimore Oriole Red-winged Blackbird Brown-headed Cowbird Common Grackle Ovenbird Northern Waterthrush Black-and-white Warbler Nashville Warbler Common Yellowthroat American Redstart Hooded Warbler Cape May Warbler Northern Parula Magnolia Warbler Bay-breasted Warbler Blackburnian Warbler Yellow Warbler Chestnut-sided Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Palm Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Prairie Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Canada Warbler Wilson’s Warbler Scarlet Tanager Northern Cardinal Rose-breasted Grosbeak Indigo Bunting
