Fresh Kills Sparrow Walk

Date: Sunday, October 18, 2026

Leader: Casey Ferino
Transportation: Carpool Trip: While carpool rides for everyone usually work out, there is no guarantee of enough volunteer drivers to accommodate all participants. The Registrar will work to organize rides and to notify participants when a rental car may be necessary. Registrar will also inform participants of the carpool fee, which is based on the trip location; the cost of any rental cars should be split evenly by those participants.
Meeting Point: After your registration is confirmed, the Registrar will share directions, the exact meeting place, and time with attendees.
Schedule: Half-day, ending in early afternoon.
Relative Difficulty: Expect about four-plus miles of walking over flat, easy terrain.

Trip Description: Join us at Fresh Kills Park on Staten Island for a sparrow-focused birding trip unlike anything else in the city. This new park opened in October 2023 and its tidal creeks, wetland edges, and sweeping native grasslands offer some of the most exciting sparrow activity in the area each autumn. Fresh Kills is home to the largest nesting colony of Grasshopper Sparrows in New York State and migration also brings Lark Sparrows, Savannah Sparrows, and White-crowned Sparrows. All of this occurs at the capped mounds of what was once the world’s largest landfill, an extraordinary landscape reborn as a great urban wildlife refuge.

Registration: Registration opens at 9 am on Monday, October 5. After that time, click here to register. Registration closes at 6 pm on Wednesday, October 14. Members (and those who have applied for membership) will be prioritized over non-members.

Please read the About Our Trips page, if you’re going on a field trip for the first time. It details our field trip policies, recommends what to bring on a trip, and offers other useful information, pro tips, and tricks.

If after visiting the About Our Trips page, you still have questions, feel free to contact the Registrar via email.