Birds

I took my first birding trip of the year, to Green-Wood Cemetery. None of the trees have budded yet, but birds were singing, staking out territory, and gathering nesting materials. Saw twenty-six different species, not including indecipherable gulls. (To put this in context: 60 species are expected this time of year in nearby Prospect Park.) The weather was warm, approaching the 70s, and overcast. Bugs were out, one of them being swallowed by a phoebe; saw a bumblebee, too. Highlights of the two hour excursion: a double-crested cormorant with crests in full Einstein-eyebrow mode; an errant snow goose, who’s been there all winter; a handful of golden-crowned kinglets, with their orange racing stripes; some good views of fox sparrows; and my first warbler of the year, a bright pine. I was looking forward to woodcock, raptors, and kingfisher, but no sign of any of these.

Double-crested cormorant; Canada goose; Snow goose; American wigeon; American black duck; Mallard; Hooded merganser; Rock pigeon; Mourning dove; Monk parrot; Downy woodpecker; Red-bellied woodpecker; Northern flicker; Eastern phoebe; Blue jay; Golden-crowned kinglet; American robin; Northern mockingbird; Pine warbler; European starling; Song sparrow; Fox sparrow; Dark-eyed junco; Northern cardinal; Common grackle; House sparrow