Prospect Park 11/1/11--American Kestrel

How it is possible to walk through Prospect Park for 4 hours on a gorgeous fall day and not see one robin or goose I am powerless to explain but I accomplished that feat today. I did see a lot of Hermit Thrushes, and I did see a lot of sparrows, but alas, no Vesper Sparrow that has been reported for at least a week, nor any pipits that were reported yesterday despite walks around the ball field enclosure at 3 different times. I thought I might have seen a pipit but it was a fleeting glance before it disappeared into the grass and I couldn't pick out the bird again from the Savannahs, juncos, and chippies that continually flew around from snow fence to snow fence.

However it was still a good day. The two most amusing sights came toward the end of my walk. Six Northern Flickers were "grazing" on the lawn of the Sparrow Bowl like, well, like sparrows. It's always odd to see a woodpecker on the ground, never mind 6 of them. Then as I walking toward the path to take out to 9th Street I checked the bare top of a tree on the Long Meadow as I always do, since it is a good perch for hawks. Sure enough, on the highest branch was an American Kestrel, my first one this year. It immediately chased a smaller bird, then landed at the top of another tree close by where I was able to get excellent view of it and watch as a Blue Jay attempted to chase it away. The kestrel was unimpressed and the jay gave up.

Lots of tree damage from the freak snowstorm this weekend. In the last couple of years the park has had a tornado come through, a blizzard, a hurricane, and now snow in October falling on leaf laden trees. I'm amazed any trees are still standing.

List for the day--a pretty good start to November.
34 species
Mute Swan  9
Mallard  25
Northern Shoveler  9
Ruddy Duck  47
Pied-billed Grebe  3    Lullwater south
Double-crested Cormorant  1
Red-tailed Hawk  2    f/o Long Meadow
American Kestrel  1    Male, perched in tree, Long Meadow
American Coot  11    Lullwater
Ring-billed Gull  45
Herring Gull  2
Rock Pigeon  10
Mourning Dove  3
Red-bellied Woodpecker  2
Downy Woodpecker  1
Northern Flicker  7    Six grazing in Sparrow Bowl
Eastern Phoebe  4    Three Sparrow Bowl, one ball field enclosure
Blue Jay  7
American Crow  2
White-breasted Nuthatch  1
Golden-crowned Kinglet  7
Ruby-crowned Kinglet  3
Hermit Thrush  7
Gray Catbird  1
European Starling  20
Palm Warbler  3
Chipping Sparrow  10
Savannah Sparrow  5
Song Sparrow  10
Swamp Sparrow  1
White-throated Sparrow  30
Dark-eyed Junco  20
Northern Cardinal  4
House Sparrow  10