Introduction to the Species Accounts

Abstract

The core of this book, offering qualitative and quantitative assessments of the migratory, breeding, wintering, and resident avifauna of the Northwest Bronx, New York City back to 1872. The present and historical statuses of 301 study area species and another 70 potential species are described in detail for the Bronx, for New York City, for Long Island, and for Westchester and Rockland Cos. for the first time since 1964. Study area winter population changes are amplified by comparison to their numbers on 90 annual Bronx-Westchester Christmas Bird Counts from 1924. Extended discussion of pertinent identification, ecological, taxonomic, and distributional issues complements the quantitative distribution and occurrence data and update all 371 species to 2016.