Registrar: Suzanne Zywicki
Participants: 6
Weather: Sunny, light wind, temperatures ranging from 60-80 degrees
Bird Species: 36
Our small but eager group met at 7 am to begin our exploration of Randall’s Island. We headed out walking slowly through the Sunken Meadow Fields, keeping an eye out for sparrows. We soon spotted two interesting birds perched in a tree not too far from the Tennis Center and worked through their field marks to identify them. They proved to be the first of eight Savannah Sparrows we saw throughout our walk. We continued walking along the East River, where we saw additional Savannahs, as well as a Killdeer on one of the ballfields and a number of Mockingbirds. As we walked, a mixture of Fish and American crows were often seen and heard overhead. In the Bronx Kill area, we first glimpsed a Spotted Sandpiper, another Killdeer, and a Kingfisher, soon followed by an excellent view of a Yellow-crowned Night Heron and two more Kingfishers chasing each other. We continued along the path bordering the Bronx Kill, where many in our group saw a small flock of Cedar Waxwings fly overhead. When we reached the Golf Center, we fanned out to try to get a good look at what might be hiding in the grass. While we didn’t see many warblers or flycatchers, we were treated to at least three American Kestrels perched around the perimeter. We then headed to the Little Hell Gate Salt Marsh area. Unfortunately, this area did not prove to be very birdy, so we decided to end an otherwise excellent morning of birding.
Species List
Canada Goose
Mallard
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Killdeer
Spotted Sandpiper
Laughing Gull
Ring-billed Gull
American Herring Gull
25 Larus sp.
Double-crested Cormorant
Yellow-crowned Night Heron
Great Blue Heron
Osprey
Belted Kingfisher
Northern Flicker
American Kestrel
Blue Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow
9 crow sp.
European Starling
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
American Robin
Cedar Waxwing
House Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Common Yellowthroat
American Redstart
Palm Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Northern Cardinal
