Date: 12/12/25 1:01 am From: Tom Fiore <tomfi2...> Subject: [nysbirds-l] Manhattan, NYC - Dickcissel, waterfowl incl. C. Goldeneyes, winter-warblers
Manhattan, N.Y. City - thru Thursday, Dec. 11th -
A Dickcissel in rather drab 1st-fall-winter-type plumage was ongoing at Central Park in an area n. of the C.P. reservoir. Relatively few birders have sought out this particular bird, a number of dickcissels having passed thru the county in the preceding months.
On the reservoir of Central Park, a bright adult Common Goldeneye appeared by Dec. 11th, and also around the same park were both a Common, and Hooded Mergansers in fair numbers, Wood Ducks, Ruddy Ducks, N. Shovelers, Buffleheads, Gadwall, American Black Duck, and ongoing multiples of Green-winged Teal, as well as the other most-typical waterfowl, plus American Coots. The appearance of a Com. Goldeneye at Central Park’s reservoir was preceded by a more-general arrival of some Common Goldeneyes including at the N.Y. Harbor, visible from lower Manhattan, in the first week of December, with very few observers thus far. In Central Park, Common Goldeneye has been just an occasional visitor over the decades, not annual at all, even as the species is annual in county-waters in winter months. Red-breasted Mergansers are showing in a number of places around Manhattan and county-waters, as are some loons, with a promise of more sightings of waterfowl and other waterbirds for the coming week, and onward.
Warblers still being seen around Manhattan included some ongoing numbers of Orange-crowned, as well as Nashville, and also some Myrtle-form Yellow-rumped Warblers, and in some locations also Ovenbirds and Common Yellowthroats. The rarer of any warblers still being seen in Manhattan were however the two Yellow-throated Warblers - one a bit brighter in plumage than the other, and usually of late, just one being seen at any given instant or, even in longer recent attempts at seeing two-at-a-time - these are both in the area of Carl Schurz Park off East End Ave. in Manhattan, and the Yellow-throated Warblers in particular also have been moving across that avenue to some street trees by construction-renovation work on a large building obviously covered in protective netting. The action for any Yellow-throated is mostly in the area of the park nearer to East 85th St. and by the Catbird playground therein, with some elm trees -but also other trees- attracting these and the other warblers at times, and with 1 or more of the warblers - at least 4 warbler species have been in and around Carl Schurz Park for some time, by now - showing some proclivity to move across East End Ave., where there may be a number of rooftop and-or hidden courtyard areas with plantings, that cannot be viewed at all from the street or -much- from the adjacent park paths. The Orange-crowned and occasionally the other warblers also have been moving about at least within Carl Schurz Park as well. It is also possible that one of 2 Yellow-throateds there has by now moved on, or met its demise from any number of potential avian predators in that larger neighborhood.
Other Manhattan parks also have had multiple species of warblers lingering, including Central Park in its totality, where there have been at least 4 warbler species- Orange-crowned and Yellow-rumped Warblers, and Ovenbird, and Common Yellowthroat all in this week at Central, and also additional warblers at some other parks, from the n. end of Manhattan to nearly the southern end. Some Baltimore Orioles had been lingering thus-far at Manhattan locations into nearly mid-December, and that is a species which, somewhat rarely, has overwintered in Manhattan, in past winters.
Far more species of various native birds have been observed overall in recent days in Manhattan, and within and from N.Y. County overall.
Good birding to all.
Tom Fiore
manhattan
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