Good afternoon folks. Margaret Liubavicius, Ian Cannel and I birded only Hanlans Point on Thursday, Sept. 24th and Friday, Sept. 25th and though very windy Friday and very humid Thusrsday we had great birding weather and some great fall birding and of course as usual the company was also great and many of the birds seen were because of Ian and Margaret, thanks guys.
On Thursday we lucked into a Warbler fallout and Friday a large number of Sparrows replaced many of the Warblers.
We spotted the adult Black Vulture at 11:50am at a not to distant height and watched as it passed directly over us and proceeded straight for Hawk Hill in High Park
Did you guys over there see it ??
Other birds we found follow.
Migrating Great Blue Herons, double figures of Cooper's and Sharp-shinned Hawks both hunting Hanlans and migrating west, 2 Peregrine Falcons with one apparently enjoying itself as it harassed a Crow all the way across the airfield, a surprise and surprised Virginia Rail in a clump of Goldenrod, Lesser Yellowlegs overhead, many Sapsuckers and Flickers both days, Eastern Wood-Pewees, Least Flycatcher, several Yellow-bellied Flycatchers, 60+ Eastern Phoebes, 1000+ Blue Jays overhead, Brown Creepers, Winter Wrens, both Kinglets in double digit numbers, Grey-cheeked, Swainson's (many), Wood and Hermit Thrushes, Brown Thrasher, A. Pipits, Blue-headed (lots), Philadelphia and Red-eyed Vireos, 18 Warbler species including Orange-crowned both days (total 6), many Palm, Nashville and Magnolia, Black-throated Blue and Green, Blackburnian, Bay-breasted, Blackpoll, Wilson's, Connecticut (both days, 1 adult and 1 first year male) and Ovenbird, Scarlet Tanager, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, 11 Sparrow species including Chipping, Savannah, Field, Vesper, Grasshopper, Lincoln, Swamp, 100s of White-throated and many White-crowned as well as 50 plus Dark-eyed Juncos and 1 Red-winged Blackbird :>)).
Good luck if anyone goes over the next few days though north winds are not forecast for until Tues thru Thursday but many birds should remain and every night brings in some migrants.
For those who do not want to bother with that long 10 minute ferry ride over to The Islands there are always the Hawk watches like High Park as Wed and Thurs promise to be a great time to view Raptors in migration.
Some other sightings per Margaret were :-
Butterflies
Eastern Tailed Blue
Summer Azure
Question Mark
Comma
Monarch
Clouded Sulphur
Orange Sulphur
Red Admiral
Painted Lady
Mourning Cloak
Viceroy
Dragonflies:
Black Saddlebags
Green Darner
Meadowhawk sp.
12-Spot Skimmer
