The past week has been pretty wet, and few migrants have managed to make it this far north. Friday was set to be dry, so I got into Central Park by about 6:00am, and started at Strawberry Fields. Immediately it was clear that there had been a major fall. Every treetop was alive with warblers. The predominate species was
Yellow-rumped Warbler, but soon enough we started picking up other species. A couple of
Palm Warblers were the first non-yellow-rumps, followed by a
Northern Parula, and
American Redstart and then a
Blue-winged Warbler. A
White-eyed Vireo circled the area a couple of times, and a
Blue-headed Vireo also showed up. A gorgeous
Baltimore Oriole was next, followed by the first of many
Black-and-white Warblers, and a lovely
Yellow Warbler.
Next stop was the swampy Pin-oak which had a host of
Ruby-crowned Kinglets, and singles of
Common Yellowthroat, Nashville Warbler and a
Northern Waterthrush. More
Yellow Warblers here, as well as a
Green Heron and a
Hermit Thrush.
The last stop of the morning was The Point where a single tree produced a second
Nashville Warbler and a
Yellow-throated Warbler (ssp.
albiloris), as well as another
American Redstart. Nearby in the willows by The Oven was a
Louisiana Waterthrush, a magnificent male
Purple Finch and brief views of a
Prairie Warbler.
The lores of this
Yellow-throated Warbler are white, suggesting it is of the central race,
Dendroica dominica albiloris.
Compare this with the D. d. dominica that I saw at Valley Stream in April 2015.
This was first pointed out to me as a Northern Waterthush, but it is quite clearly a
Louisiana Waterthush. (unstreaked throat, bubble-gum pink legs).
