Cooper’s Hawk contemplating a bee
Once thought averse to towns and cities, Cooper’s Hawks are now fairly common urban and suburban birds. Some studies show their numbers are actually higher in towns than in their natural habitat, forests. Cities provide plenty of Rock Pigeon and Mourning Dove prey.
White-throated Sparrow Closeup
White-throated Sparrows stay near the ground, scratching through leaves in search of food, often in flocks. White-throated Sparrows sing their distinctive songs frequently, even in winter. The picture of this White-throated Sparrow Closeup with lots of feather detail was taken at the Green-wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York.
Juvenile Herring Gull in Flight
Herring Gulls are one of the most familiar gulls of the East Coast and many people just call them “seagulls.” In fact, some two dozen different species of gulls live in North America, and they present almost endless opportunities for identification.
Northern Mockingbird
Both male and female mockingbirds sing. They often mimic the sounds of birds (and frogs) around them. They go on learning new sounds throughout their lives. The song is a long series of phrases, with each phrase repeated 2-6 times before shifting to a new sound; the songs can go on for 20 seconds or more.
Greater Yellowlegs
Greater Yellowlegs is common, tall, long-legged shorebird of freshwater ponds and tidal marshes, the Greater Yellowlegs frequently announces its presence by its piercing alarm calls. The photograph of this Greater Yellowlegs was taken at the newly constructed blind on the East Pond in the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge.
American Robin with Berries
Massive seasonal American Robin migrations occur across large areas of Canada, the U.S., and Mexico as individuals respond to the seasonal availability of soil invertebrates in the spring and of fruit in the fall. The picture of this American Robin was taken at the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx, New York.
Blue-headed Vireo
The Blue-headed Vireo is a common and vocal bird of northeastern forests. The Blue-headed Vireo is the latest vireo to depart in autumn; migration more prolonged than in spring. Migrants use wide variety of wooded habitats, from shrubbery to treetops, either coniferous or deciduous.
To hear the song of the Blue-headed Vireo, click on the arrow below.