Prospect Park Bird Sightings & North Brooklyn Nature News

A newsboard for reporting bird sightings, happenings & announcements,miscellany in north Brooklyn and the 3 main central north Brooklyn green regions : historic Prospect Park, Brooklyn Botanic Garden , & Greenwood Cemetery.A service for Brooklyn birders and visitors. Note: short posts of rare sightings /activity alerts are sent by cell phone.If the species name(s)/locale is first in the title heading, it's a cellphone text message afield.Also note: Conservation issues & posts.

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Lake notables

While on duty, in the zone I inspect, I caught sight of YELLOW WARBLERS. Whether they bred here or passing thru as this species is reputable as a early migrant, I found 4 birds on the south side of the Lake. In addition, over the lake William Earp reported NORTHERN ROUGH WINGED SWALLOWS.

On the mainland across the strait from West Island, two YELLOW WARBLERS moved thru the birch tree. One was definitely a juvenile male, the other likely a female. Later , as I gaze at Three Sisters Island, two more a very short time later, one Yellow was definitely an adult female. A very nice observation in this slow summer. Some reclusive CEDAR WAXWINGS and a female BALTIMORE ORIOLE also appeared.

I received a report from visiting British birder William Earp of two NORTHERN ROUGH WINGED SWALLOWS hawking insects over the Lake, a sighting that lasted 10 minutes, A very uncommon sighting , likely rare in the past, its very possible this species bred here given the improved lake habitats and new islands in the lake by the rink. It was bound to happen , joining the resident Barn Swallows.

We are in the very early stages of sporadic fall ( YEP) migration so , those migration anxiety levels are rising...

Yellow warblers: 2at west island mainland,2 on 3 sisters islands.1imm male,1 adult female in mix

Fwd: eBird Report - Prospect Park, Jul 21, 2014

Sent from my MetroPCS 4G Android device

------ Original Message ------
From: Adam Welz
Date: 7/21/2014 11:07 PM
To: Peter Dorosh;
Subject: Fwd: eBird Report - Prospect Park, Jul 21, 2014

today's in-between-feeding-babies list

Adam

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <do-not-reply@ebird.org>
Date: Mon, Jul 21, 2014 at 11:06 PM
Subject: eBird Report - Prospect Park, Jul 21, 2014
To: adamwelz@gmail.com

Prospect Park, Kings, US-NY
Jul 21, 2014 5:10 PM - 6:10 PM
Protocol: Traveling
2.0 kilometer(s)
Comments:     Hot, overcast, Parkside to Pools via Lullwater
22 species (+1 other taxa)

Mute Swan (Cygnus olor) 7
Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) 1     Upper Pool
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) X
Green Heron (Butorides virescens) 1
Black-crowned Night-Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) 1
Herring Gull (Larus argentatus) 1
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia (Domestic type)) 1
Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) 5
Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica) X
Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon) 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus) 1
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) 1     calling, Ravine
Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus) 2
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) X
Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) 9
House Wren (Troglodytes aedon) 1
American Robin (Turdus migratorius) X
thrush sp. (Turdidae sp.) 1     poss Swainson's Thrush judging by back & tail color - seen briefly flying through Ravine - front not seen at all
Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis) X
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 1
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) X
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) 1
House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) X

View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S19183008

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)

Fwd: eBird Report - Prospect Park, Jul 21, 2014

Sent from my MetroPCS 4G Android device

------ Original Message ------
From: Adam Welz
Date: 7/21/2014 11:07 PM
To: Peter Dorosh;
Subject: Fwd: eBird Report - Prospect Park, Jul 21, 2014

today's in-between-feeding-babies list

Adam

Monday, July 21, 2014

Fwd: revised green-wood list

-----Original Message-----
From: Orrin Tilevitz
To: Peter Dorosh <prosbird@aol.com>
Sent: Mon, Jul 21, 2014 10:48 am
Subject: revised green-wood list

Green-Wood Cemetery this morning. 29 species in about 1 1/2 hours, including a couple of yellow warblers. Not bad for mid-July.

Monk parakeet

Rock dove

Song sparrow

Chipping sparrow

Great blue heron

House wren (heard, many)

American robin

Mourning dove

Northern cardinal (heard)

Warbling vireo (heard, at least 3)

Baltimore oriole (heard)

Great egret

Black-crowned night heron

Northern mockingbird

Northern flicker

Common grackle

House finch

Gray catbird

Red-bellied woodpecker (heard)
Red-winged blackbird

Laughing gull (flyover)

White-breasted nuthatch (heard)

European starling

House sparrow

Black-capped chickadee

Tufted titmouse (hard)

Yellow warbler (2 near Sylvan Water)

Eastern kingbird

Sunday, July 20, 2014

Cedar Waxwings

Top of Maryland Monument stairs: Seen in the large mulberry fruit laden,or the nearby cherry tree,13 Cedar Waxwings perched together. Seems like a bumper crop of birds . Today 4-5:15
On the lake,14 Laughing Gulls.

Fwd: Fwd: eBird Report - Prospect Park, Jul 20, 2014

-----Original Message-----
From: adamwelz@
To: Peter Dorosh ; Tom Stephenson <12toms data-blogger-escaped-gmail.com="">
Sent: Sun, Jul 20, 2014 3:06 pm
Subject: Fwd: eBird Report - Prospect Park, Jul 20, 2014

Possibly my lowest Park list total ever...

Misspellings courtesy of my iPhone

Begin forwarded message:

From: do-not-reply@ebird.org
Date: July 20, 2014 at 18:26:02 EDT
To: adamwelz@.com
Subject: eBird Report - Prospect Park, Jul 20, 2014

Prospect Park, Kings, US-NY
Jul 20, 2014 3:15 PM - 4:15 PM
Protocol: Traveling
2.0 kilometer(s)
Comments:     Sunny, hot, park busy, Parkside to Lookout Hill and back
18 species

Mute Swan (Cygnus olor) 4     2 adults, 2 young
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) X
Laughing Gull (Leucophaeus atricilla) 1
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia (Domestic type)) 1
Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) 2
Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica) X
Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens) 1
Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus) 1
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) 3
Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) X
House Wren (Troglodytes aedon) 3
American Robin (Turdus migratorius) 5
Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis) 3
Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) 3     1 fledgeling seen begging from adult - did they breed in Prospect Park?
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 1
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) 1
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) 2
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis) 2

View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S19164716

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)

Fwd: White-eyed vireos

From Marvin Baptiste

-----Original Message-----
From: marvin9876@aim.com
To: prosbird
Sent: Sun, Jul 20, 2014 2:35 pm
Subject: White-eyed vireos

Seen this morning on the lull water

  Sent from my iPad

Saturday, July 19, 2014

Today National Moth week starts

http://nationalmothweek.org/

Friday, July 18, 2014

Fwd: Prospect Park today

-----Original Message-----
From: Kathleen Toomey <kath>
To: Peter Dorosh <ProsBird@aol.com>
Sent: 18-Jul-2014 17:56:45 +0000
Subject: Prospect Park today

Prospect Park, Kings, US-NY
Jul 18, 2014 10:30 AM - 2:30 PM
Protocol: Traveling
2.0 mile(s)
26 species (+1 other taxa)

Mute Swan 11 Six adults and five cygnets
Wood Duck 2
Mallard 5 One female and 5 ducklings
Black-crowned Night-Heron 1
Laughing Gull 2
gull sp. 2
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 3
Mourning Dove 6
Chimney Swift 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1 Heard
Eastern Kingbird 2
Warbling Vireo 4 One seen, 3 heard
Barn Swallow 5
White-breasted Nuthatch 1
House Wren 4 Three seen on Lookout, one heard in the Ravine
American Robin 20
Gray Catbird 6
European Starling 12
Cedar Waxwing 9
Song Sparrow 1 Heard
Northern Cardinal 1
Red-winged Blackbird 5
Common Grackle 1
Orchard Oriole 1
Baltimore Oriole 1
American Goldfinch 2
House Sparrow X

Fwd: Prospect Park, Brooklyn, Jul 18, 2014

-----Original Message-----
From: ticornis
To: Peter Dorosh
Sent: Fri, Jul 18, 2014 1:38 pm
Subject: Prospect Park, Brooklyn, Jul 18, 2014

Peter: A short walk around the Park, with a new experience. A inmature Red-tailed Hawk, around Quaker Hill taking a thermal, was mobbed by 1 Laughing Gull. Never seen this kind of behavior from this sps of gull towards a raptor. Other sps worth mentioning were the 2 sps of Orioles.

Brooklyn is great birding!!

Prospect Park, Brooklyn, Kings, US-NY
Jul 18, 2014 9:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Observer: Rafael G Campos R
Protocol: Traveling
2.5 kilometer(s)
30 species

Mute Swan (Cygnus olor) 3
Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) 2 juvenals, Upper Pool.
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) 2
Black-crowned Night-Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) 1
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 1 1 inmature seen near the Quaker Hill taking a thermal, was mobbed by 1 Laughing Gull.
Laughing Gull (Leucophaeus atricilla) 4
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia (Domestic type)) 2
Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) 5
Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica) 2
Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus) 2
Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens) 2
American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) 1
Warbling Vireo (Eastern) (Vireo gilvus gilvus) 4
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) 1
Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) 5
Tufted Titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor) 1
White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis) 1
House Wren (Troglodytes aedon) 6
American Robin (Turdus migratorius) 15
Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis) 12
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) 9
Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) 6
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 1
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) 6
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) 2
Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula) 3
Orchard Oriole (Icterus spurius) 2
Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula) 1
House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus) 1
House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) 14

Brooklyn is great birding!!!

From the Public hearing Jamaica Bay refuge

Held July 17th evening, public hearing mostly concerned with the West Pond breach ( caused by Hurricane Sandy ) and its future mitigation or restoration.Heard there was an excellent turnout.One should not be intimidated from expressing their views. Do write in a comment and why JBWR is important to you. ( short or concise is great )

see the link

http://parkplanning.nps.gov/document.cfm?parkID=237&projectID=44691&documentID=60140

Thursday, July 17, 2014

Prospect Caspian Tern Records

Willim Earp's sighting of CATE 7/10 was the first seen since May 3, 2009 after I searched the office recs. Below is the history.Good sighting after 5 years absence.11th likely record.

Caspian Tern 1 5/3/2009
Caspian Tern 1 8/14/2004

Caspian Tern 1 8/14/04

Caspian Tern 1 8/12/04

Caspian Tern 2 8/9/04

Caspian Tern 1 8/9/04

Caspian Tern 1 8/8/04

Caspian Tern 1 5/19/2002

Caspian Tern 1 5/15/02

Caspian Tern 2 6/3/2001

Caspian Tern 1 8/5/2000

Caspian Tern 1 7/23/00

Caspian Tern 1 7/21/00

Caspian Tern 1 6/30/1999

Caspian Tern 2 6/3/99

Caspian Tern 1 9/7/1954

Caspian Tern 1 9/6/54

Caspian Tern 1 9/5/54

Caspian Tern 1 9/4/54

Caspian Tern 1 9/3/54

Caspian Tern 1 9/2/54

Caspian Tern 1 3/3/40

Fwd: Monsanto vs. monarch butterflies (and Monsanto is winning)

-----Original Message-----
From: Kevin Curtis, SaveOurEnvironment.org <info@saveourenvironment.org>
To: prosbird <prosbird@aol.com>
Sent: Thu, Jul 17, 2014 9:17 am
Subject: Monsanto vs. monarch butterflies (and Monsanto is winning)

Monarch butterflies are in crisis – help protect them by urging the USDA and the EPA to restrict potent weed killers like Monsanto's Roundup!

Got Milkweed? Probably not...

Weed killers like Monsanto's Roundup herbicide is killing the majestic monarch butterflies by wiping out up to 80% of the milkweed in the Midwest.

Now these precious pollinators are in crisis!

Monarch in flight by Dwight Sipler via Flickr

Ask the USDA and EPA to revisit the safety of GMO crops and the herbicides that accompany them before more damage is done.

Supporter –

Monarch butterflies need milkweed. It is the only plant they can lay their eggs on and that the caterpillars can eat.

But the combination of genetically engineered corn and soy and weed killers like Monsanto's Roundup herbicide has wiped out nearly all the milkweed that used to grow along the monarchs' migratory routes, leaving the butterflies nowhere to lay their eggs

Now monarch butterflies are in crisis and unless we act quickly, they may disappear. Soon!

Tell the USDA and the EPA to to adopt tough restrictions on pesticide-resistant crops and the toxic herbicides responsible for the rapid disappearance of monarchs.

Every fall, for the last umpteen thousand years, hundreds of millions of beautiful orange and black monarch butterflies have taken to the skies, flying more than 2,500 miles across Canada and the U.S. to reach their winter home in the thick forests of tall oyamel fir trees that grow in Mexico's Sierra Madre mountains.

This winter, only 33.5 million butterflies made it to Mexico – the lowest level ever reported.

Like honey bees and other pollinators, monarch butterflies are now in crisis, with populations plummeting dramatically since the introduction of herbicide-ready corn and soybean crops in 1997.

The huge increase in the usage of GMO crops and the toxic herbicides like Monsanto's Roundup that accompany them is a major culprit for the monarch's disappearance, along with rapid deforestation in Mexico and extreme weather caused by climate chaos.

The world needs monarch butterflies. But they can't survive without milkweed. And milkweed can't survive weed killing chemicals...

Please join us and our coalition partners, NRDC and Friends of the Earth, in speaking out to try to save monarchs. Ask the EPA and the USDA to revisit the safety of toxic herbicides and to stop approving more of these dangerous chemicals.

Monarchs and bees are crucial members of our ecosystem. If we do not stand up now to demand that their continued existence take priority over profit margins, they will go away. Forever.

Please don't wait – send your message now.

Thank you again for speaking up to protect these beautiful creatures and for all you do.

Best,

Kevin Curtis
Director, SaveOurEnvironment.org
info@saveourenvironment.org

This message was sent to prosbird@aol.com. Visit your subscription management page to modify your email communication preferences, unsubscribe, or update your personal profile.

Fwd: Caspian Tern

Visiting Great Britain birder ( visiting his daughter here in Brooklyn) William Earp went to Prospect Lake on the morning of July 10th and got a mighty surprise !

A CASPIAN TERN came in and stayed for a few minutes, enabling William to get off a terrific in flight shot of the large tern. This rarity comes into Prospect on very rare occasions. I believe the last one was also a July record ( a check of Ebird says 2001). I will verify the records later.

My Aol spam controls have strict protocols, hence William's email to me was rejected JUly 10th. I was notified yesterday by Janet.

Even though its slow in summer, it pays to stroll into Prospect , especially the Lake and do a watch.

Congrats to William to his terrific find!

-Kingsboider

Below are excerpts of William's report

-----Original Message-----

From: William Earp

To: prosbird <prosbird@aol.com>;

Sent: Wed, Jul 16, 2014 9:07 pm

Subject: Fwd: Caspian Tern

Hi Pete

From: William Earp
Date: 10 July 2014 19:57:47 GMT+01:00
To: "Prosbird@aol.com"
Subject: Caspian Tern at Prospect Park Lake this morning

Hi Pete

Greetings from a visiting English birder. I have a daughter living in Crown Heights and I have met and corresponded with you on several occasions in the past few years. You have always been very helpful.

This morning I had a Caspian Tern over the Lake for a couple of minutes at about 7.30 am. It flew in from the south- east, circled a couple of times, once coming quite close to within 50m or so, and then carried on west.I was on the Peninsula, south side. I have seen Caspian in various places, in both the US and Europe,but never here. It was an adult, a very large tern with broad wings ( significantly bigger than Sandwich Tern, which is the European comparison species) black cap and large red bill.

I did manage to take an in- flight photo which I could send you a copy of if you would like verification. It will just need a bit of organisation with my daughter's computer.

I am here for another couple of weeks and will keep my eyes open for anything else. I can generally get to the Park first thing in the day.

With best wishes

William Earp

Photo recd 7/116

As I said, it is an inflight record shot, and unfortunately there is nothing to convey scale. But you can see the length of the wings and get a sense of their breadth, and the bill, even in this front-on shot, looks pretty large. If you look carefully the legs and feet are black too, and the tail is minimally forked.

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Thunder and a Wood Thrush;GWC list

While I was working in the Ravine replacing crappy fence, a WOOD THRUSH crossed the path. I presumed it bred in that area.

***********************************

Green-Wood Cemetery, Kings County, New York, US ( Map )

Date and Effort

Edit Date and Effort

Sun Jul 13, 2014 11:25 AM

Protocol:: Traveling

Party Size:: 3

Duration:: 1 hour(s), 20 minute(s)

Distance:: 1.0 mile(s)

Observers:: Jo Ann Preston List , Peter Dorosh , Tom Preston List

Comments:: Jo Ann and I signed up for a Trolley tour of Green-wood by Marge Raimond. We arrived early, and bumped into Peter Dorosh at the Valley Water. We went to all the ponds, then said goodbye to Peter before joining Marje's tour. It was excellent, and fully recommended! Marje is full of fascinating facts and, if you know her, won't be surprised that it was also very entertaining