- Birds mentioned
American Bittern
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Glossy Ibis
Greater White-fronted Goose
Wood Duck
Blue-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Ring-necked Duck
Tufted Duck
Harlequin Duck
Little Gull
Black-headed Gull
Bonaparte's Gull
Mew Gull +
Iceland Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Forster's Tern
Atlantic Puffin +
Short-eared Owl
Red-headed Woodpecker
Eastern Phoebe
Purple Martin
Tree Swallow
Northern Shrike
Painted Bunting +
Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow +
Fox Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow (Gambel's)
Harris' Sparrow +
Lapland Longspur
Boat-tailed Grackle
if followed by (+) please send written report of the sighting to:
Jim Lowe
NYS Avian Records Committee (NYSARC)
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
159 Sapsucker Woods Road
Ithaca, NY 14850
The NYSARC report form can be found at:
http://birds.cornell.edu/fnysbc/nysarc.htm
- Transcript
hotline: New York Rare Bird Alert
number: 212 979-3070
to report: Weekdays: Tom Burke 212 697-0606
Long Island: Tony Lauro 516 734-4126
Greater Brooklyn: Paul Keim 718 875-1151
compiler: Tom Burke
coverage: New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
transcriber: Greg Kunkel
- Begin RBA Tape
Greetings, this is the New York Rare Bird Alert for Friday March 26th
at 1:00 PM.
The highlights of todays tape are Mew Gull, Harris' Sparrow, Atlantic
Puffin, Painted Bunting, Greater White-Fronted Goose, Tufted Duck,
Little, Black-headed, and Lesser Black-Backed Gulls, Lapland
Longspurs, and Red-Headed Woodpeckers.
The first winter MEW GULL has continued to be seen at Shinnecock
Inlet at least through Tuesday, its sightings there becoming less
frequent so perhaps the bird may be expanding its feeding range. This
Eurasian subspecies, Common Gull, is usually found along the eastern
jetty at Shinnecock Inlet often feeding along the beach just east of
the jetty. This spot can be reached by coming west from Southampton
along Dune Road/Meadow Lane to a parking lot just before the inlet.
The drake TUFTED DUCK was also still on Cooper's Neck Pond just east
of Halsey Neck Pond along Meadow Lane on Sunday.
The Bridgehampton HARRIS' SPARROW was also still present Tuesday but
apparently is becoming even more reclusive. It and the adult Gambel's
WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW FREQUENT a hedgerow by a baseball backstop that
can be reached by taking Town Line Road from Route 27 east of
Bridgehampton. At the immediate fork on Town Line go left on
Wainscott Hollow Road for 8/10ths of a mile and look for the hedgerow
and backstop on the left.
Also in that area the GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE continues at Hook
Pond and along Dune Road just west of Shinnecock Inlet the
NORTHERN SHRIKE was last reported on the 17th and the SHORT-EARED OWL
was still present over the weekend.
On Monday an adult LITTLE GULL with a full hood was at Sag Pond, and
an ICELAND and two LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS were at Mecox, with a
BLUE-WINGED TEAL along Mecox Lane. Arrivals there included four
GLOSSY IBIS at Sag Pond and a SNOWY EGRET on Dune Road, both
yesterday.
Finishing up out east, two female HARLEQUIN DUCKS were northwest of
Montauk Point along the rocks on Monday, and recently an immature
ATLANTIC PUFFIN flew on to a fishing boat 70 miles south of Montauk
Point, and refused to leave the boat. It is now at a rehabilitation
center and the plan is to release it 70 miles out when it is ready.
Friday a PAINTED BUNTING was reported from Prospect Park and was
relocated there in the same spot this morning. Perhaps a young male,
the bird was seen each day about 8:30 AM. Directions are as follows:
Enter Prospect Park from Prospect Park SW coming in at the Vanderbilt
Playground entrance which is across from Vanderbilt Street. Walk
straight to the lake. The road that curves around to the left of the
lake is Wellhouse Drive. Walk to the brushy area on the left side of
Wellhouse Drive under lightpost number 249. The bird has been feeding
here and as well as at the rose bushes farther up the hill.
At Point Lookout on the western side of Jones Inlet the large flock
of BONAPARTE'S GULLS gathering there over the weekend also attracted
up to five LITTLE GULLS, with two adults Saturday, one Sunday, and up
to three immatures on Sunday, plus three BLACK-HEADED GULLS featuring
two adults and an immature. An ICELAND GULL also visited on Saturday
and the FORSTER'S TERN continued its appearances there. A few
HARLEQUIN DUCKS were also seen irregularly along the ocean jetties.
About seven or so LAPLAND LONGSPURS were still at Saint Charles
Cemetery last Sunday and a couple of the males attaining nice color.
The presence of two Peregrines and two Merlins kept the flock moving
around and very difficult to pin down. The cemetery is located
southeast of Farmingdale along New Highway, which is just north of
Exit 34 on the Southern State Parkway. Look for the Horned Lark flock
at the southern end of the cemetery.
Eight RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS remain in Central Park, with four still
along the west side of The Great Lawn, and the park has also
experienced a nice influx of FOX SPARROWS lately.
Four NELSON'S SHARP-TAILED SPARROWS were noted Sunday at Big Egg
Marsh just south of Jamaica Bay Refuge, these possibly migrants,
while at the bay recently have been such incoming species as
GREAT EGRET, EASTERN PHOEBE, TREE SWALLOWS, and BOAT-TAILED GRACKLES.
AMERICAN BITTERNS have also been reported.
A PURPLE MARTIN was seen at the Fire Island Boat Basin last Sunday.
Indicative of there moving were 24 WOOD DUCKS, two NORTHERN
SHOVELERS, and 22 RING-NECKED DUCKS on Playland Lake in Rye on
Wednesday were unusual.
As a reminder too, as reports begin to circulate that due to the present
progressive molt of Horned Grebe into breeding plumage, a progression
that produces an appearance very much like that of an winter Eared
Grebe, any Eared Grebe identification at this season should rely
strongly on structural differences from Horned Grebe rather than plumage
differences.
To phone in reports;
on Long Island call Tony Lauro at 516 734-4126,
in the Brooklyn area call Paul Keim at 718 875-1151,
or during the day except Sunday call Tom Burke at 212 697-0606.
This service is sponsored by The Linnaean Society of New York and The
National Audubon Society. Thank you for calling.
- End RBA Tape
- End transcript
Greg Kunkel
Smithtown (Suffolk), NY
74055.1622@compuserve.com