Date: 5/11/26 7:42 am From: Tom Fiore <tomfi2...> Subject: [nysbirds-l] N.Y. County, NYC - weekend of May 9-10 - many birds! (+5/11 Monday-Blue Grosbeak, Battery Park, Manhattan)
A young or molting-to-adult male Blue Grosbeak is now at Battery Park, near the south end of Manhattan, for Monday, May 11. More details in a further report for all-Manhattan birds.
. . . .
New York County -in N.Y. City- including Manhattan, Governors, Randalls, and Roosevelt Islands and some other smaller isles, as well as the surrounding waters and skies above -
The past weekend provided fairly good to excellent conditions for bird observing, and modest or better conditions for birds stopping in, or passing by in close-enough encounters for observations. Some of the rarer species came earlier this month, a few just-barely before the 2-day weekend. For warbler diversity, at least 28 warbler species were noted, with just one of those species - Prothonotary - not noted for Central Park or any other part of Manhattan, solely at Randalls, as noted previously and below. A modest number of migrants were best left identified to genus, such as some distant and unheard Calidris-genus and a few other-larger sandpipers or shorebirds, some Empidonax-genus flycatchers, and perhaps a few of Catharus-genus thrushes. Some reports for species not listed at all below may have not been confirmed, which may take time, or not receive confirmations by review, which can happen for a multitude of reasons. Many but not all of the sightings have been placed on eBird, and some contain associated media archived in the Macaulay Library. Numbers of -total- observers run to well over 500 for the weekend.
Birds of the past weekend, for May 9th and 10th in New York County.
Brant - ongoing in numbers here.
Canada Goose
Mute Swan
Wood Duck - scarcer now.
Gadwall
Mallard
American Black Duck
Mallard x American Black Duck - hybrids
Green-winged Teal
White-winged Scoter - in NY Harbor only.
Bufflehead
Red-breasted Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Wild Turkey - an ongoing individual.
feral Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Black-billed Cuckoo
Common Nighthawk
N.B.,
- - Chuck-will's-widow and Eastern Whip-poor-will, each well-documented in the prior week. - -
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
American Coot - a bit late for here.
American Oystercatcher - NY Harbor migrant or area-breeder.
Semipalmated Plover - few.
Killdeer
Least Sandpiper
Semipalmated Sandpiper
American Woodcock
Spotted Sandpiper - still common in the county.
Solitary Sandpiper
Greater Yellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs
-Greater or Lesser- Yellowlegs-species, when seen distantly and not heard.
-larger shorebird sp., and shorebird sp., particularly Calidris in flight at some distance and not heard.
Bonaparte's Gull - found at and along Randalls Island, with a few reports out in NY Harbor, single for Randalls - not an unprecedented county-date for the species, NB, records of birds generally, go back farther, much-farther in time, than the modern-eBird era with observations from -all- of the twentieth century, and rarely, even earlier.
Laughing Gull - numerous in some locations at times.
Ring-billed Gull - numbers have been dropping.
American Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Common Tern - growing numbers, with up to 25-plus around Governors Island, still growing, and also some elsewhere in the county waters - a breeding species.
Forster's Tern - confirmed sighting from along Randalls Island. Others likely earlier in this spring.
- large tern sp.- distantly over NY Harbor, on May 10th.
Red-throated Loon
Common Loon
Great Cormorant - scarce by now.
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Green Heron
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron - thus far this year, the only fully-confirmed sightings -adult bird- were and are for Randalls Island, starting by this past weekend.
Black Vulture - most regularly seen from n. Manhattan.
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
Sharp-shinned Hawk - also see below note.
Cooper's Hawk
- Sharp-shinned or Cooper's Hawk - some sightings best placed in this dual-possibilities category.
Bald Eagle
Red-tailed Hawk
- owls of multiple spp. are ongoing.
Belted Kingfisher
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - scarce, but a few may summer-over, esp. first-spring individuals, and are never breeding here.
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern -Yellow-shafted- Flicker
American Kestrel
Merlin
Peregrine Falcon
Monk Parakeet - scarce breeder.
Olive-sided Flycatcher
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Acadian Flycatcher - in part, by vocalizations heard.
Alder/Willow Flycatcher - in past also known as Traills Flycatcher - both of these Emopidonax-genus now a possibility. Willow attempts breeding in this county.
Least Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe - decreased in this past week.
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird - increased in this past week.
White-eyed Vireo - good spring for this vireo in this country, found in multiple parks. A potential breeder in this county, breeds annually in New York City.
Yellow-throated Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo - still passing thru.
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow
Common Raven - breeds in this county, including on Manhattan.
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Bank Swallow
Barn Swallow
Cliff Swallow - the scarcest of the 5 annually-occurring swallow spp. in this county, breeds in low numbers. Has now been seen as a likely pair at Randalls Island.
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
House Wren
Winter Wren - scant now, but a few still lingering.
Marsh Wren - most recently found on Governors Island.
Carolina Wren
European Starling
Gray Catbird
Brown Thrasher
Northern Mockingbird
Veery
Gray-cheeked Thrush - multiple, but still-more are likely… and see next -
-Gray-cheeked or Bicknell’s - thrushes with grayish cheeks, and not heard at all.
Swainson's Thrush
Hermit Thrush - scarcer but still some around, including some in such parks as Bryant Park in mid-Manhattan.
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Cedar Waxwing - increases.
House Sparrow
House Finch
Purple Finch - ongoing in multiple locations.
Pine Siskin - few, and mainly-only from Central Park in recent days.
American Goldfinch
Chipping Sparrow
Clay-colored Sparrow - one, photographed at Randalls Island on May 10.
Field Sparrow
Dark-eyed -Slate-colored- Junco - scant, and late, for this county.
White-crowned Sparrow - in multiple locations thru the weekend.
White-throated Sparrow
- - Seaside Sparrow - seen and photographed May 8.- -
Savannah Sparrow - still numerous and in many locations.
Song Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Eastern Towhee
Bobolink
Orchard Oriole
Baltimore Oriole
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Rusty Blackbird - scant now, and getting slightly-late here.
Common Grackle
-
Ovenbird
Worm-eating Warbler
Louisiana Waterthrush - scarcer now, and by now, best confirmed if photographed or video-recorded with audio. However, there are rare records here to June.
Northern Waterthrush
- Louisiana/Northern Waterthrush - indefinite sightings of waterthrushes, with Northern far more likely and common now.
Blue-winged Warbler
Golden-winged x Blue-winged -hybrid- Warbler some sightings of blue-winged pertain to these hybrid assemblages. Not counted as an additional species.
Black-and-white Warbler
Prothonotary Warbler - one, at Randalls Island by May 10, with photos and multiple observers.
Tennessee Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
American Redstart
Cape May Warbler
Northern Parula
Magnolia Warbler
Bay-breasted Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Palm Warbler - rather late in this county, but not unprecedented - few, seen at Central Park and elsewhere to May 10, and after that.
Pine Warbler
Yellow-rumped -Myrtle- Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Canada Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
-
Scarlet Tanager
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
- and some other species also reported, not listed above, with some additions fairly likely.
- - -
Thanks to so many keen and energetic observers and photographers for many-hundreds of sightings, alerts, reports, tips, etc. and to all of the leaders and helpers on many not-for-profit guided walks organized by and with non-profit organizations and institutions, which are ongoing this spring in this county - and all around N.Y. City.
Many species are already nesting or preparing to nest in this county, and many more soon will be. Please allow those and all migrants some space as you observe and do nothing that might jeopardize the nesting efforts. Thank you.
