Where The Birds Are

Today was a banner bird day. I saw something moving in the underbrush, and as it turned out, it was a couple of Prairie Warblers, which I don't think are seen too often in Central Park. Along the way, we met a well-known and respected Ornithologist who pointed out a very rare sighting of a Yellow-Breasted Chat. I don't propose to be a bird expert, and the only reason I know some of these names is because I have listened carefully while birding in the park with folks who are well respected, but I am learning. I did learn today that when "birding" you want to wear camouflage-like colors (makes sense and I'd basically been doing that anyway because I'd thought of it on my own, but my birding-expert friends confirmed it). Here's our list from today:

4 American Redstarts
1 Baltimore Oriole
3 Black-and-white Warblers
1 Black-throated Blue Warbler
2 Blue-gray Gnatcatchers
Multiple Blue Jays

3 Cape May Warblers
1 Carolina Wren
1 Cedar Waxwing
1 Chestnut-sided Warbler
1 Downy Woodpecker
5 Mockingbirds
1 Mourning Dove

Multiple Northern Cardinals
1 Northern Flicker
2 Ovenbirds
2 Prairie Warblers
Multiple Rock Doves
Multiple Sparrows
1 Veery
1 Yellow-breasted Chat
Assorted Grey Squirrels

1 Rat
Assorted Turtles

Check out the mold growing on this fungi. Who knew this kind of thing could happen? Mold on fungus?!

A Turtle Pond regular pointed-out that she was pretty sure these were the goslings from a few weeks back. They've been busy eating!

Got turtles? Check.

I've seen this same guy for three weeks in a row!

The Blue Jay's colors are spectacular!

Here's my first-ever photo of a female cardinal. I also saw a Flicker today and a Cedar Waxwing, two totally awesome birds!

Ahhh, freshly cut grass. I learned from my father that if our yard looked like this after mowing, there were two things we had to do (a) take the blades off the mower and sharpen them and then (b) put them back on in a balanced fashion so they were level. Looks like The Great Lawn mowers of Central Park need a tune-up. Maybe it's toward the end of the season and they're getting ready to do that over the winter.

Imagine...if these doors were open.