Bird Joy \'berd-joi\ n

1: happiness and delight stirred by the sights and
sounds of birds  2: a web site that shares the love
of birds and nature in New York City and beyond

Photo by Ron Austing 

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Introduction

A number of feathered surprises have made December 2004 a delightful time for birders in New York City. American White Pelicans flew over Pelham Bay, Bronx. A Ring-necked Pheasant, Great Horned Owl, Nashville and Wilson's Warblers, and not one, but two Ash-throated Flycatchers appeared in Prospect Park, Brooklyn. Most exciting was a Rufous Hummingbird and a Boreal Owl, which continues to dazzle onlookers in Central Park, Manhattan. Considering these sightings, I don't think it would be too much to ask for a Vermilion Flycatcher for the New Year, do you (grin)?

All this avian unpredictability is part of the charm and addiction of birding. It's the stuff that birders dream of: seeing something rare, or, dream-of-dreams, finding something unusual to share with other bird-crazy people. Couple this with National Audubon Society's annual Christmas Bird Count and birding builds to a giddy frenzy. Therefore, I have much to share this month: lots of bird pictures, interesting facts, and photos of bird walk participants and counters for the 105th Christmas Bird Count. Keep turning the pages. This month's four-page report is jam-packed.

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Bird Alerts/Interesting Sightings
New York City, NY
December 2004

~ Boreal Owl: Admittedly, as days grew colder, I began daydreaming about owl irruptions. Often though my dreams excluded Boreal Owls, those enigmatic creatures named after the Greek god of the north wind, Boreas. New York City always seemed too far south, or so I had thought until Sunday, December 19, 2004, in Central Park, NY.

Boreal Owl, Central Park, NY, December 2004, by Phil Jeffrey

As the story goes… Initially, no one wanted to scout the southwest area for the Christmas Bird Count. The lack of water and trampled soil makes it a typically unproductive habitat. Finally, Jim Demes signed on. Are we glad he did! He found the usual suspects and a supposed saw-whet roosting in evergreens outside the famous Tavern on the Green. Sure, a saw-whet would have been a great bird for the park's count. What Jim could not imagine was that the owl was actually a Boreal. That was until another birder, Peter Post, stopped to see Jim's discovery. Imagine their expressions when reality finally hit. Before them was a rare, northern owl species and it was roosting off busy Central Park West.

The following frigid morning, I saw the owl with my own eyes. I still shake my head in wonder. According to William C. D'Anna's profile on Boreal Owls in Bull's Bird of New York State, just a little more than two dozen records exist for New York with 10 before 1960 from the Adirondacks region. The closet discovery to Manhattan occurred back in January 1975 when a dead Boreal was found on Long Island at Cedar Beach (Levine, E. 1998. Bull's Birds of New York State, pp. 338-339, Comstock Publishing Associates, Ithaca). What a gift it was to see this magnificent bird and to share its story not just with other birders, but with passersby who learned a bit about owl ecology and behavior. For info about this owl got to: All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

~ Snowy Owl: Let's not forget the Snowy Owl that birders continue to enjoy since November in West End, Jones Beach, NY. This is the same location where I had seen my first Snowy Owl years ago. I discovered it perched in the middle of the beach, staring at the pounding waves. Occasionally it swiveled its head when a gull flew low. Then there was a breathtaking moment when its piercing, yellow eyes locked onto mine.

Another sighting of a Snowy occurred this Christmas Eve at Breezy Point Beach, NY. On Christmas morning, my neighbor, Dalia, my husband, and I set out to find this great gift. Although it didn't appear, we enjoyed male and female Northern Harriers, a raft of Red-breasted Mergansers, a charming fluttering of Snow Buntings, and the sun glistening on calm blue waters. Until the next recorded sighting, feast your eyes on this Snowy, which my friends and I saw on Breezy Point Beach, NY, two years ago.

Snowy Owl, Breezy Point, NY, 2002, by Dennis Guiney

~ Eastern Screech-Owl: Of course, resident owl species are also magnificent. On Christmas Eve, my friends, Eva and Bob Callahan, took a small group of family and friends to a nearby pond in Staten Island. Like a classic fairytale, the moon hung behind a tree surrounded by an eerie haze. A tremolo filled the woods and within minutes, three screech owls flew towards us. One fluttered in the distance, but two perched a few feet before us: a gray phase and a red phase. Fantastic! One of the onlookers joked that she didn't have to go to church because she already had a religious experience. Here is a photo of one of the screech owls we enjoyed on Christmas Eve.

Eastern Screech-Owl, Christmas Eve 2004, by Don Riepe,
The American Littoral Society

~ Pale Male and Lola: What blasphemy if I didn't mention New York City's famous hawks who were evicted from their nest at 927 Fifth Avenue on a rainy, December day. This caused an international outcry that resulted in the building management reversing its decision. A new nest structure with spikes that hold branches and twigs is back in its original location. Many are hoping that Pale Male and Lola will begin nesting. Wouldn't that be a fitting New Year's gift? Consult the following links for detailed and up-to-date information: Cal Vornberger's Urban Wildlife; New York City Audubon; and Palemale.com.

~ Ash-throated Flycatchers: On December 5, only one hour after my Sunday morning bird group saw a lovely lemony-yellow Ash-throated, another appeared! The last double sighting of this western vagrant occurred on December 12th. Otherwise, reports of single, Ash-throated Flycatcher sightings continued on December 18, the day of Brooklyn's official Christmas Bird Count and last on December 20th. Click my third page for photos and fun facts about this species and other flycatchers.

~ Wilson's Warbler: Owls, hawks, and flycatchers weren't the only species that thrilled New Yorkers. The Wilson's Warbler was one of three warbler species seen during December in Prospect Park, Brooklyn. The warbler often foraged on a hillside below Lookout Hill, an area that is a well-known magnet for feathered visitors and migrants.

Wilson's Warbler by Bill Schmoker

Its normal winter range lies in Louisiana, Texas, Mexico and as far as Panama. Despite its wandering, in true Wilson's form, the bird foraged close to the ground while restlessly twitching its tail, sometimes in a circular motion. This can be a helpful behavioral clue when sorting confusing female warblers. Other female Wilson's markings to look for include: a dark unmarked tail, yellow face, big black eyes and a brighter yellow eyebrow also called a supercillium. Otherwise, seeing the male's black cap is a clincher and marks it as a Wilson's unlike any other warbler. Thank your stars for that easy field mark.

~ Rufous Hummingbird: This darling species first appeared in the famous Strawberry Fields of Central Park, NY. Sightings continued until December 13, 2004. Rufous Hummingbirds are western birds that breed in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Alaska, and Canada. The majority spend winter in Central Mexico, but they are increasingly overwintering in the Gulf States.

Rufous Hummingbird in Central Park, December 2004, by Phil Jeffrey

Historically, overwintering Rufous Hummingbirds had been extremely rare throughout the east. In the early 1980's, fewer than two sightings would occur sporadically from the Great Lakes region throughout the east. Compare this to the latest record. According to Stacy Jon Peterson of Trochilids.com, 1,235 Rufous-type hummingbirds (Selasphorus) were reported from July 2003 through January 2004. The genus name, Selasphorous is specified because young and female Rufous and Allen's hummingbirds are virtually indistinguishable by sight. For range maps, pictures, and exhaustive statistics, I recommend Peterson's site, which is a labor of hummingbird love: Trochilids Website: Winter Hummingbirds.

In the New York City Metro area, Rufous and other hummingbird species have also been on the rise during winter months. For a detailed account of these birds starting from 2001, I recommend Phil Jeffrey's page for wonderful pictures and interesting info: NYC Metro Area Vagrant Hummingbirds.

Some researchers believe that seemingly wintering Rufous Hummingbirds are migrants dispersing from Mexico. Other researchers theorize that small wintering populations may have always existed and perhaps survived on sapsucker wells and insects but that the increase of hummingbird feeders, gardens, banding projects, and bird watching has increased overall awareness. Nonetheless, it is apparent that there are real range shifts by multiple species. Definitive reasons for these winter shifts are still a mystery.

Two of the most celebrated hummingbirds to visit New York City occurred in December 2001. They were Calliope Hummingbirds, North America's smallest hummingbird species. The 3.5" tykes put much-needed smiles on New Yorkers' faces after the tragedy of 9/11. Children, teachers, grandparents, tourists, neighbors, reporters -- you name them -- showed up in record numbers to watch these jewels.

After their leaving (or succumbing to the elements, no one could be sure), David Burg of WildMetro, invited me to a candlelit, farewell tribute in honor of the Calliopes. He asked that I distribute my story about the Calliopes that lived in Fort Tryon Park overlooking the cliffs of the Hudson River. To this day, the Calliopes, the people, and the farewell tribute remains indelibly pressed in my memory. Please click my holiday story from December 2001: "An Afternoon with the Calliopes" by Arleen O'Brien.

"I rejoice that there are owls."
Henry Thoreau

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Copyright © Arleen O'Brien, All Rights Reserved, 2004

This is a personal web page. However, if you have questions about Prospect Park and the Audubon Center, please click: http://www/prospectpark.org. Or, you may contact me at 718-287-3400 ext. 109. Enjoy the birds! Arleen O'Brien, Education Curator & Senior Naturalist.

I take great care to acknowledge photographers, authors, etc. in this web site. If you notice an error, please feel free to contact me so that I may properly give credit. To do so, click my name.