Migrants in New York City On May 15, 1921, Madison Square [20-23rd streets between Madison Ave and 5th Ave, Manhattan], a small park in the very heart of Manhattan, was the scene of an astonishing migratory bird exhibit. Bewildered in the thick weather of the preceding night, large numbers of small birds had dropped into this haven of refuge and through the kindness of Mr. George Gladden who telephoned me of this remarkable event, I was able to make a rough census on two successive days, and to investigate the cause of such an unusual happening.
Arriving about 1 p.m., I was surprised to find the birds swarming over the lawns, but relatively few of them up in the trees. It was a novel sight to watch Redstarts and a Chestnut-sided Warbler flitting about on the close cropped sod, and the birds seemed so ravenously hungry that even Maryland [Common] Yellowthroats were to be seen pecking at the pieces of bread thrown in by passers-by. Grasshopper Sparrows appeared more at home, as they crouched low in the short grass, where they probably found more natural food. The total number of birds, on the 15th, I estimated at about 525, exclusive of House Sparrows. Ovenbirds were decidedly in the majority, scattered everywhere through the park, while the next most abundant birds, White-throated Sparrows, were gathered in more or less of a flock in the center of the Square. Twenty-three species of native birds were seen alive, and one more, the Magnolia Warbler, was represented among the birds picked up dead. By the following day more than three-fourths of the birds had left. Among those remaining, of course, were some that had suffered injuries, but others seemed quite unhurt. Of the larger and stronger species, such as the Catbird, Towhee, and White-throated Sparrow, even a smaller proportion was left. The species and the estimated numbers of individuals present on these first two days are as follows, but Ovenbirds and a few others remained for many days thereafter. May 15 - 16 [1921] Lincoln's Sparrow 1 - 0 Chipping Sparrow 8 - 2 Field Sparrow 4 - 1 White-throated Sparrow 100 - 15 White-crowned Sparrow 2 - 0 Swamp Sparrow 4 - 0 Grasshopper Sparrow 8 - 1 Towhee 50 - 8 Northern Water-Thrush 2 - 2 Ovenbird 200 - 60 Maryland Yellow-throat 80 - 30 Yellow-breasted Chat 1 - 0 Redstart 4 - 2 Chestnut-sided Warbler 1 - 1 Black-throated Blue Warbler 2 - 0 Myrtle Warbler 1 - 0 Parula Warbler 2 - 1 Black-and-white Warbler 7 - 1 House Wren 3 - 0 Brown Thrasher 3 - 0 Catbird 35 - 4 Wilson's Thrush 3 - 0 Gray-cheeked Thrush 2 - 0 Many birds of the species enumerated above were found dead in the vicinity of Madison Square, and the cause of the disaster is not far to seek. The night had been very foggy, and it was against the tower of the Metropolitan Life Building, to the east of the Square, that the birds had hurled themselves. The brilliant electric lights at its apex, and the illuminated clock-dials lower down doubtless played a part. So many of the dead birds had been carried off before my arrival that it was impossible to estimate accurately the number that had succumbed. The superintendent of the Metropolitan Life-Building tells me that about one hundred were found on the building, but two or three times that number probably fell in the park and on nearby streets. We noted that few Towhees or Sparrows had been killed; most of the casualties were among the weaker Warblers. James P. Chapin, American Museum of Natural History, New York City. ======================================== 24 May 1921. Mr. Chapin told of his experiences in Madison Square Park on May 15th, when numbers of migrating birds, that had been bewildered in the fog and rain of that morning, were to be seen on the grass and in the bushes of the Park. There were many species of Warblers - among them the Ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapillus) was the most numerous. He also saw a Lincoln's Sparrow (Melospiza l. lincolni) and 8 Grasshopper Sparrows (Ammodramus savammrum australis). He estimated that over 100 birds had been killed by striking the light of the Metropolitan Building. Mr. Johnston reported for Central Park a Golden-winged Warbler (Vermivora chrysoptera) on May 14th, a Connecticut Warbler (Oporornis agilis), Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivomis) and Lincoln Sparrow on the 15th, and a Kentucky Warbler (Oporornis formosus) on the 16th. The following, whose names had been proposed at the last meeting, were elected to Resident Membership: Miss Blanche Samek of 511 West 113th Street, Miss Gertrude Litchfield, Mrs. Alice F. Mapes and Miss Mary K. Ruby, all of 56 West 75th Street, New York. Abstract of the Proceedings of the Linnaean Society of New York for the Four Years Ending March 11, 1924. Pages 21-22. -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01 Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
