A recent visit to Jamaica Bay didn’t offer up the hoped-for and previously-reported White-faced Ibis, a bird that I have still not seen in New York State, but there was a host of other birds to enjoy, to say nothing of the simple pleasure of sunlight in a gorgeous environment.  What follows are some of the birds and scenery that make Jamaica Bay the best birding location in New York City.

blossoming cherry tree

Brown-headed Cowbird Molothrus ater

West Pond of Jamaica Bay

digiscoped flyover Osprey Pandion haliaetus (uncropped image)

Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center

Tree Swallow Tachycineta bicolor disheveled by the wind

Big John’s Pond

Barn Owl Tyto alba in the box at Big John’s Pond

Written by Corey
Corey is a New Yorker who lived most of his life in upstate New York but has lived in Queens since 2008. He's only been birding since 2005 but has garnered a respectable life list by birding whenever he wasn't working as a union representative or spending time with his family. He lives in Forest Hills with Daisy and Desmond Shearwater. His bird photographs have appeared on the Today Show, in Birding, Living Bird Magazine, Bird Watcher's Digest, and many other fine publications. He is also the author of the American Birding Association Field Guide to the Birds of New York.