Post #10 - Lonely in NYC, birds as new friends, lots of photos

I am currently staying in my dad's apartment in New York City. He works overseas, and when he is in the country, he spends his time with my mom in Philadelphia; I can squat here until Sonia and I make our next move (i.e. we both secure work in the same place). She has been in California for the past 2 weeks, and due to some family business, will likely be there for another month. What this means for me is that I am very lonely at the moment.  Reading, writing, walking, cooking, and eating are all done alone. I spend 20 hours of each day in the apartment - all alone. Without a car, escaping Manhattan is not a viable option. As a result, Central Park has been my only convenient escape. 

Each morning, much like an Emperor Penguin traversing the Antarctic ice, I shuffle over to the Park to take attendance. There is the usually expansive collection of White-throated sparrows rummaging around on the tundra beneath the feeders hung in Evodia field section of the Ramble. There numbers are so great that if any one of them either froze to death overnight, his absence would go forever unrecognized. The same can be said for the hoards of grackles that jostle with these sparrows for prime position under the ramshackle feeders. Chickadees and titmice are lured right to the hand with seed or bread; Peanuts suffice for Blue jays. A lone Common redpoll inevitably makes a breakfast cameo at the thistle feeder, and an individual American tree sparrow and a seasonally rogue immature chipping sparrow intermix with the ever-shifting group of White-throated sparrows. Cardinals, goldfinches, robins, starlings, nuthatches, Fox sparrows, and juncos round out the quorum. A lone Pine sisken, my first of the year, unexpectedly joined the milieu this morning.

The woodpeckers have certainly starred this past week. I have now worked out the approximate expanse surveyed and patrolled by two handfuls of individual birds representing four species (DOWO, HAWO, RBWO, and YBSA). By learning their individual patterns and proclivities, I have been able to put myself in position for some really nice shots of a few of them.

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - Sphyrapicus varius

Central Park, New York City, NY, 2/16/15

Canon 500mm f/4 IS v1 on EOS 1D Mark IV

1/2000 at f/5.6, ISO 1600, Manual mode

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - Sphyrapicus varius

Central Park, New York City, NY, 2/16/15

Canon 500mm f/4 IS v1 on EOS 1D Mark IV

1/2000 at f/5.6, ISO 1600, Manual mode

Red-bellied woodpecker - Melanerpes carolinus

Central Park, New York City, NY, 2/16/15

Canon 500mm f/4 IS v1 on EOS 1D Mark IV

1/640 at f/5.6, ISO 1600, Manual mode

Red-bellied woodpecker - Melanerpes carolinus

Central Park, New York City, NY, 2/16/15

Canon 500mm f/4 IS v1 on EOS 1D Mark IV

1/640 at f/5.6, ISO 1600, Manual mode

Red-bellied woodpecker - Melanerpes carolinus

Central Park, New York City, NY, 2/16/15

Canon 500mm f/4 IS v1 on EOS 1D Mark IV

1/640 at f/5.6, ISO 1600, Manual mode

Red-bellied woodpecker - Melanerpes carolinus

Central Park, New York City, NY, 2/16/15

Canon 500mm f/4 IS v1 on EOS 1D Mark IV

1/640 at f/5.6, ISO 1600, Manual mode

Although limited in number and diversity, these winter residents have kept me company during these two, solitary weeks. They have become part of my routine, and I look forward with great anticipation to the few hours I spend with them each day. They ask so little, and they give so much. They really help with the solitude.