As everyone knows by now the eastern United States was hammered yesterday by a classic nor’easter which created blizzard conditions for much of the eastern seaboard. New York City, where I live and work, was no exception. My office near Port Authority was technically closed but I (was) volunteered to man the phones for the day so I decided to spend my lunch break documenting the snowfall in Times Square.
Yes, I know this is not the bird-centric post that one would normally expect from 10,000 Birds but there is one bird in the pictures below. Can you find it?
Somehow I survived Snowpocalypse 2010 and managed to get home and to my computer to share these pictures with you. If you are so inclined, share your way to deal with the winter doldrums in the comments (and if you found the bird in the pics above tell everyone where it is).
Feral Pigeon in flight in the second picture Corey. Snow doesn’t look too bad an overreaction by the media and authorities or did it get worse?
Hmmm, that really does look like nothing more but a bit of snow and wind. Apparently, you haven’t been to the Adirondacks recently, ey? City life making you a bit … er … sensitive? Found you have a soft spot for warmth and comfort?
😉
And that feral pigeon on the second pic: how can we be sure it isn’t North America’s first Hill Pigeon?
@Alan and Jochen: The hype may have been a bit overblown, but, hey, I went to work…and, Jochen, we know it’s a Feral Pigeon and not a Hill Pigeon because there are no hills around. Duh! 🙂
Fantastic pictures! They truly show the lack of snow in NY. I lived in Minesota for nine years and this would not be considered more than muck! You guys have amazing eyes.. where is the bird?
@Renato & Paola: Thanks! And, in defense of NYC’s toughness, I will say that the pictures were taken early in the day before the heaviest snow arrived and that Times Square had more people removing snow per square foot than anywhere I have ever been.
And the bird is in the lower middle of the big white billboard in picture #2…I was kind of amazed how quickly it was found myself!
@Corey: nice excuse, nice try, but not working. Where on your pictures are all these people removing snow? Where are the snow piles? Most of the people I see aren’t even wearing hats.
No, no, I think deep down in your heart, you detest city life and miss the days you were close to nature in upstate NY – and this was clearly a (successful) attempt of your subconsciousness to discredid the city.
Go get yourself some Boreal Chicks, okay?
Ha! I thought this was a trick question and that the bird was going to be part of one of the billboards.
Holed up in central NJ, I was torn yesterday between enjoying the storm, the sense of time stopping, my feeder birds and missing the way NYC, at least Manhattan, totally shrugs off weather and goes on with life.
Here’s a link to an article that ran in the NYTimes in 2003, about “birding” indoors when you can’t outside:
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/31/arts/in-winter-there-s-an-art-to-birding.html?
What snow storm?
Is that a bird? I needed a magnifiying glass to see it. You guys are really having a bad day… If you want to see a bird go to my blog and see the condor, that is a bird!
The storm was hyped, but it was also pretty powerful. We got 16 inches in central NJ. I’m not sure if it hit New York and New England as heavily. Manhattan has a bit of an urban heat island effect (plus excellent public transit), so a snowstorm like this won’t be as disruptive there as outside of the city.
I’m surprised at how quickly the pigeon was found, too. It’s easily missed.
Great Pics, Corey. I love the bright signs and colors with the snow. But, one must remember that Manhattan is not all of NYC; Do you hear that Major Bloomburg. In Brooklyn, we got at least 10 inches if not more. Getting to school was a real bear today as we do not have that many people clearing the sidewalks etc.. But the day off did give me a chance to walk the streets and take some pictures and watch my backyard birds. Hey, I found out among all the house sparrows I have a white throated one visiting the feeder. Nice surprise.
That’s a living, breathing pigeon? I thought it was part of the billboard design. And you told me there were other birds in New York City!
Corey, I have to agree with Cindy…there are additional boroughs besides Manhattan that comprise NYC. It is true Manhattan usually doesn’t do badly in these kind of storms, and your pics reflect that. Even where you live is probably plowed and shoveled better than a mere mile away where I live. My neighborhood got a good 12 inches, and snow is still piled everywhere, although most (not all) of the streets are passable at this point.
For contrast, you should have included some pics from Forest Park, where the heavy snow caused all the saplings and bushes to bow under the weight and completely disguised the paths making them unrecognizable.
I also have to agree with Jochen…it seems you were just trying to prove that NYC isn’t affected by the ravages of nature the same way other places are.
ps as a native NY’r, it was a given there would be a pigeon in the pic!