Registrar: Joyce A. Wright
Participants: 7
Weather: 36°F, Sunny, Winds 15-20 mph
Bird Species: 34
The day started at the Conference House Park with a chill and steady wind. The Eastern Phoebe was the bird of the day, seen at all three locations. Our first Pine Warbler of the season was also observed here.
Some trees with blackened bark were noted, and Seth explained this was damage caused over the years by Spotted Lanternflies. Five deer were observed as we walked the paths.
At Wolfe’s Pond Park, Seth pointed out a woodchuck on the hill across from the stream, near where a Belted Kingfisher was seen. Introduced in the 1990s, wild woodchucks are now common in Staten Island’s green spaces, including Conference House and Mount Loretto Unique Area.
Walking along the pond toward the ocean, Seth referred to the “pond” that no longer exists following Superstorm Sandy. He described the former “fingers” that opened and closed to the ocean in cycles, a process that has not occurred in years; as a result, there is no longer a true pond.
Species Lists
Birds
Wood Duck
Mallard
Bufflehead
Common Loon
Horned Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Osprey
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow
Golden-crowned Kinglet
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Carolina Wren
European Starling
Northern Mockingbird
Hermit Thrush
American Robin
House Finch
American Goldfinch
Field Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
White-throated Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Pine Warbler
Northern Cardinal
Mammals
Woodchuck
White-tailed Deer
