I walked back from Jamaica Bay to the Broad Channel subway station, where I was entertained by House Sparrows and European Starlings.
I tend to forget what beautiful plumage Starlings have.
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This male House Sparrow looked carefully to make sure no trains were coming before hopping down to resume bathing in a puddle on the tracks.
Back downtown, my friend took me on a walk around Central Park. Because of the holiday, the park was very busy with people. It was well populated with flowers, too.
The view from the Jackie O. reservoir lake was striking.
The lake had quite a few gulls, including another life bird: Great Black-backed Gull. It also had several Double-crested Cormorants.
Its edge had a Gray Catbird ...
as well as Red-eared Sliders.
This female House Sparrow looked on while several males bathed in the sand, presumably to rid themselves of fleas.
Just as we were leaving, a large bird circled overhead. It was one of Central Park's famous Red-tailed Hawks. The only photo I got was terrible but at least it's a memento of seeing a true NYC birding icon!
It's always a wonderful surprise to find such examples of Nature thriving in the middle of our cities. And how fortunate we are that some influential people of the past have saved and preserved such sites for us. Let's hope that we do as well by future generations.
ReplyDeleteCities such as New York, San Francisco and Vancouver would certainly be much less people-friendly without their wonderful parks.
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