Ah, Central Park: the perennial favorite spot for unleashed dogs, tree-slumbering hipsters, and a wide variety of feathered friends. Today, the 111th Christmas Bird Count took place in the park; citizen birdwatchers, guided by Urban Park Rangers, spent the morning canvassing the entire 843 acres of green. They came to a final tally of 59 different species of birds and 6,220 individual birds living in the park currently.
The Parks Department credited the good weather with the high count, which explained sightings of certain uncommon or rare birds for this time of year, including a Red-headed Woodpecker. “The highlight of this year’s event was the sighting of a Varied Thrush in the Ramble...It is unusual to see this bird, typically from the Pacific Northwest, at any time in the City, and especially during the Christmas Bird Count,” said Glenn Phillips, Executive Director of New York City Audubon. The City Birder spotted one in the Park as well, just a few weeks ago. If you're itching for more aviary fun, you can look through The Birds of Central Park, which have mapped all their bird sightings to a Google map, with thumbnails of all the birds they've spotted.
