birds
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Sharpie on the Prowl
A Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus), eyeballing everything that moves above, before, behind, below. Waves of song-birds were stirred up by this slim raptor, the smallest hawk species in North America. This may have been the same bird I saw on three more separate encounters that day, racing after prey.Sharpies, as they are affectionately known, are…
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Winter Wren
The day began with a tweet from the City Birder of a photo of a dead Winter Wren (Troglodytes hiemalis) killed by a cat in Green-Wood. So I was pleased several hours later to see two live specimens. They were living up to their genus name, Troglodytes, going into the nooks and crannies of this…
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Woodcock Sunday
In the fall, it’s not unheard of to flush an American Woodcock while walking in Green-Wood. They explode out of the leaf litter — the first time it happened to me, I was unknowingly close to the bird, so I was perhaps more startled than it was. Their plumage corresponds wonderfully to leaf litter. They…
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Green-Wood Was So Very Birdy
The cold front that came through Saturday night practically snowed birds. There were so many in Green-Wood yesterday I thought it was the height of spring migration. There were several types of sparrows and warblers, both kinglets, thrushes, lots of Flickers, a couple of Red-winged Blackbirds, one or two Brown Creepers, one or more Woodcock,…
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Lordly Peregrine
Since moving to Sunset Park in late August, I’ve kept an eye out for birds on the top of the local landmark, St. Michael’s RC Church on 4th Avenue at 42nd. The cross on the steeple seems like a perfect perch for raptors, making them the lord of all they survey. For until this century,…
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Pluvialis squatarola Updated
UPDATED, edited, and corrected: An astute eye and excellent photographer, Deb Allen has let me know that this is actually a Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola). The bird is sporting non-breeding plumage, hence the lack of the tell-tale black belly (which, to make things interesting, the American Golden Plover also sports). Sorry about the error, indignor…
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Falco sparverius
American Kestrel, urban raptor.This female was keeping a sharp eye on Bush Terminal Park yesterday. She was molting; perhaps she’s a first year bird. There was a nest somewhere in the area, I’m told, and the park has been a reliable location for these, our smallest raptor.She had just eaten something. She dove low for…
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Merlin Hunting
A plump silhouette on a dead pine. The first rule of birding is to always look at the anomalies. And hope the sun comes out! Because that, and an old concrete gun platform to lean on, makes for a better photograph.This bird was hunting around these dead pines at Fort Tilden. It perched on several…
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Ravens Again
A pair of Ravens (Corvus corax) sailed on the stiff breeze along the shore of Bush Terminal the other day. This is where I and others have seen and heard them off and on since New Year’s Day. They have an almost floppy wing action, exacerbated by their long finger-like primary feathers. Several hours later…
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Canada Warbler
Now, that’s an eye-ring!Cardellina canadensis.Heading to the northwestern flank of South America for the winter.
Backyard and Beyond 