Registrar: Mary Beth Kooper
Participants: 17
Weather: Mostly cloudy, 75F, SSW winds 6 MPH
Bird Species: 33
Shannon Curley and José R. Ramírez-Garofalo, both researchers at Fresh Kills Park, led our group on a fascinating morning tour of the reclaimed landfill. Our most sought-after bird of the day was the Sedge Wren, so we chose thearea where it had been seen to start our visit. We had not been there long when José heard a Sedge Wren chipping. We were told that the wrens were on their nests, likely already with young, so we did not see much activity in the fields. A few members of our group did catch a couple of quick glimpses of the wrens and nearly everyone in our group heard them. Some other highlights of the trip included brief views of one or two Grasshopper Sparrows, some interesting grasshoppers, and a vocalizing Ring-necked Pheasant. Unfortunately, we also saw many of the Spotted Lanternflies that have recently invaded our region.
Our group is very grateful to José and Shannon for taking time to guide us and share their vast knowledge of the species and habitat of Fresh Kills Park.
Species Lists
Birds
Canada Goose
American Black Duck
Green-winged Teal
Ring-necked Pheasant
Rock Pigeon
Chimney Swift
Laughing Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
Cooper’s Hawk
Downy Woodpecker
Merlin
Eastern Kingbird
American Crow
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Sedge Wren
European Starling
American Goldfinch
Grasshopper Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Bobolink
Brown-headed Cowbird
Common Yellowthroat
BUTTERFLIES AND OTHER INSECTS
Orange Sulphur
Monarch
Spotted Lanternfly
Black Saddlebags
Red-legged Grasshopper
Carolina Grasshopper
Green Darner
Admirable Grasshopper
Straight-lanced Meadow Katydid species
