Central Park Birds & Brews Nighthawk Edition with Alan Drogin, Gillian Henry, and Amanda Bielskas, 9/17/2025 

Registrar: Amanda Bielskas
Participants: 12 
Weather: mid 70s, cloudy with a chance of rain, but it held off
Bird species: 17
 
We had a great evening walk in Central Park before it got too dark for birding and then made our way to a bar on Amsterdam Ave. for some libations. We started at 81st street and headed into The Ramble where we saw several Ruby-throated Hummingbirds in a hedge row full of jewelweed, which was also hosting a couple of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks. We gathered a couple of warbler sightings on our wanderings in The Ramble and gathered several additional species along the path on the south shore of Turtle Pond. As we approached closer to the Castle, the front half of the group got a quick glimpse of a Common Nighthawk as it flew into and out of the brush, but it was only briefly seen. We headed up to the Castle overlook to hopefully spot some additional nighthawks, but the sunset came pretty quickly without any additional sightings. On our way out of the park, we stopped on some rocks to check out the Chimney Swift roost in the 80s, but we only saw a few lingering birds heading into the chimney as dark was falling. Though we had heard them in good numbers chattering over the course of the whole walk. At the end of the walk, we headed out for drinks on the Upper West Side, and good conversation was had by those who participated.  We look forward to the next fall Birds & Brews in Brooklyn in October on a weekend when we won’t be as pressed for time by a setting sun!


Species List

Mallard 
Common Nighthawk 
Chimney Swift 
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 
Belted Kingfisher 
Red-bellied Woodpecker 
Blue Jay 
Northern House Wren 
Gray Catbird 
American Robin 
Black-and-white Warbler 
Tennessee Warbler 
American Redstart 
Cape May Warbler 
Northern Parula 
Northern Cardinal 
Rose-breasted Grosbeak