Urban Birding in Central Park, NYC

Penn Birding members went on the GAPSA-organized bus trip to New York City to do some urban birding in Central Park.

Turtle pond with cormorants and shovelers

At Turtle Pond, we saw a variety of waterfowl, as well as Eastern Phoebe. You may be able to spot the Double-crested Cormorants and Northern Shovelers in the photo.

Next to the platform was a handsome pair of mallards, showing off their iridescent purplish-blue speculums with black and white edges.

A little sparrow was hopping along the platform next to Turtle Pond, peeking at us.

A couple of Canada geese flew toward us, honking loudly as they landed in the water.

The highlight of birding Central Park was a golden-crowned kinglet on the banks of Turtle Pond. The adult male had a vivid orange patch on the crown that looked almost fluorescent!

Can you see a golden-crowned kinglet in this photo?

We watched an American Robin catching lunch. The bird pulled a worm from the ground, then pecked smaller pieces off to eat. It was mesmerizing to watch up close!

We saw huge flocks in the trees, flying back and forth. Red-bellied woodpeckers drew attention to themselves with their distinctive calls.

Some common grackles were foraging on the ground toward the east side of the park.

Grackles

One very enjoyable aspect of birding Central Park is that there are always many beautiful blue jays around. Back in Philadelphia, I tend to see one or two at a time, but there are many in Central Park, jabbering loudly, flying back and forth, very easy to find.

All in all, it was quite a productive birding excursion to Central Park. I recorded seeing over 200 birds and 16 species. My checklist is posted below.

Central Park, New York, New York, US, Apr 1, 2017
Canada Goose  2
Mallard  15
Northern Shoveler  20
Double-crested Cormorant  7
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon)  2
Red-bellied Woodpecker  2
Eastern Phoebe  1
Blue Jay  6
Golden-crowned Kinglet  1
American Robin  30
Northern Mockingbird  1
European Starling  90
White-throated Sparrow  3
Northern Cardinal  2
Common Grackle  20
House Sparrow  30