In a little park on the Hudson River Greenway, Clinton Cov, there have been a group of Seaside Sparrows for the last few days. This species is usually very hard to find in salt marshes, so having these birds hanging out on a lawn and median between a sidewalk and a bike path, has been a great joy for birders used to spending hours to see a brief glimpse.
There being easy to find has had its drawbacks however. One of the sparrows became a meal for an American Kestrel on Friday.
I finally got to see the head of the eyass at Washington Square Park today. This was after both parents left the nest for over 45 minutes. Both of them were all over the park and the buildings to the east, south and west.
I was thrilled to see three eyasses being fed by their mother and then their father at Tompkins Square Park this evening. So were many school children who got a look at the young ones having a meal by looking at my camera screen.
If you have a spotting scope, there is a great spot to look at the nest in front of a restaurant at Avenue B just south of 7th Street.
Please email with any corrections or additions.
Changes are basically in the number of eyasses confirmed at each nest. This count will grow as the eyasses become easier to see.
The two eyasses at Fifth Avenue are getting bigger. They’ve now easy to see at feedings. This weekend should be a great time to come visit the nest.
It’s looking more and more like only one egg out of three hatched at Washington Square Park. I was at the nest this afternoon and through the twigs could see only one eyass eating (around the 2:30 mark on the video).
One of the lesser known issues with rodenticides is their effect on fertility in raptors. We might be witnessing this here. While the Parks Department has stopped using poisons in Washington Square Park, they are commonly used by NYU properties around the area.
