April birds and curious raccoon of the Central Park

You cannot visit NYC in April and not notice the squirrels vigorously digging through the leaves to look for last year’s supplies. How do they find them after so many months? I am sure they forget many, but those seeds and nuts they forget, later will repopulate the forest.

White-throated sparrows (Zonotrichia albicollis) camouflage exceptionally well among the brown leaves. Often you can hear them among the leaves long before you spot them.

The coo of the mourning dove (Zenaida macroura) is one of the calmest of them all. I always find it relaxing.

Passing the Turtle Pond, you can clearly see tiny heads sticking out of the water. Red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta) is native to Southern United States. Their popularity in pet industry and cuteness of tiny turtles bought in tiny tanks, made this species take over many parts of the United States after their owners realize that this is not a simple pet. Selling turtles over 4 cm in diameter is illegal, and in Florida selling any size sliders is not allowed. Contrary to popular belief, in addition to vegetation, they feed on small fish and frogs. Unwanted, they are often released to the local ponds and lakes.

Female cardinals, similar to the males, have a reddish mohawk on their heard. Excellent camouflage.

Meanwhile, male cardinals never disappoint fully displaying their bright red plumage.

I could not decide who was photobombing whom. It’s a tie in my opinion. Cardinal vs Dove, 1:1.

American robin posing, as he also wanted to make it to this page. At least I hope so.

It was getting dark, then red-bellied woodpecker appeared. He was pushing my 200 mm lens and gave me no time to adjust. Sadly, their nests are often taken over by the European starlings.

Meanwhile, walking towards the exit a raccoon decided to give me a little show. He quietly climbed up a tree branch, checked the nearby nest for eggs, and disappointed at his lack of good fortune today decided to climb much larger tree. I left him alone, as he ventured across the small creek further into the park.