Weekly Rare Bird Alert

Below is a transcript of the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending December 4, 2009:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Dec. 4, 2009
* NYNY0912.04

- Birds mentioned

PINK-FOOTED GOOSE+
RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD+
ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER+

CACKLING GOOSE
KING EIDER
Common Eider
Red-throated Loon
Common Loon
Northern Gannet
Cattle Egret
SANDHILL CRANE
American Oystercatcher
Purple Sandpiper
LITTLE GULL
Bonaparte's Gull
ICELAND GULL
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Black-legged Kittiwake
Black Skimmer
PARASITIC JAEGER
RED-HEADED WOODPECKER
WESTERN KINGBIRD
Blue-headed Vireo
Horned Lark
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Orange-crowned Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Snow Bunting
Baltimore Oriole

- Transcript

If followed by (+) please submit documentation of your report electronically and use the NYSARC online submission form found at
http://www.nybirds.org/NYSARC/goodreport.htm

You can also send reports and digital image files via email to nysarc3 AT nybirds.org.

If electronic submission is not possible, hardcopy reports and photos or sketches are welcome. Hardcopy documentation should be mailed to:

Jeanne Skelly - Secretary
NYS Avian Records Committee (NYSARC)
420 Chili-Scottsville Rd.
Churchville, NY 14428

Hotline: New York City Area Rare Bird Alert
Number: (212) 979-3070

To report sightings call:
Tom Burke (212) 372-1483 (weekdays, during the day)
Tony Lauro at (631) 734-4126 (Long Island)

Compiler: Tom Burke, Tony Lauro
Coverage: New York City, Long Island, Westchester County

Transcriber: Ben Cacace

BEGIN TAPE

Greetings. This is the New York Rare Bird Alert for Friday, December 4th 2009 at 9pm. The highlights of today's tape are ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER, PINK-FOOTED GOOSE, RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD, LITTLE GULL, SANDHILL CRANE, WESTERN KINGBIRD, CACKLING GOOSE, KING EIDER, ICELAND GULL, PARASITIC JAEGER and RED-HEADED WOODPECKER.

The ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER found November 22nd in Queens has continued to frequent a series of vacant lots at least through Wednesday. Though the flycatcher does disappear on occasion patience has generally been rewarded with some very nice views. The lots the flycatcher has been using are right off exit 17N on the westbound Belt Parkway which quickly gets you to the corner of North Conduit Avenue and Cohancy Street. The latter a one-way street which requires a loop around to park near the red brick building by the train tracks. Look in that lot or in adjacent lots or in the field across 99th Place one block west. An ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER was also being seen there at least to Sunday.

The PINK-FOOTED GOOSE in the area of Sunken Meadow State Park north of Smithtown has not been as cooperative as the Ash-throated but presumably continues in that area as hopefully also does the Barnacle Goose. The last report of the PINK-FOOTED comes from last Saturday when it spent much of the day on the ball fields at Kings Park High School. This location one and a half miles east of the Sunken Meadow Parkway on the south side of Route 25A. This area is only used when there is no activity on the ball fields. A CACKLING GOOSE was seen at Sunken Meadow State Park last Friday and a CATTLE EGRET showed up in the park on Wednesday.

The immature male RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD continues to visit feeders in the Grymes Hill section of northeastern Staten Island. The homeowner at 122 Hillside Avenue very graciously continues to welcome birders to look for the hummingbird which visits feeders on the left side of his house. An immature RED-HEADED WOODPECKER was also at Clove Lakes Park on Staten Island until Wednesday.

A WESTERN KINGBIRD appeared at Jones Beach West End last Sunday but shortly disappeared into the dunes. On Wednesday at West End there were 110 COMMON EIDER, 10 PURPLE SANDPIPERS on the Jones jetty, 32 AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHERS and some SNOW BUNTINGS and HORNED LARKS.

An immature ICELAND GULL was spotted today at Coney Island Creek behind the Mark Twain High School off Neptune Avenue in Brooklyn where 4 BLACK SKIMMERS continued off Coney Island to last Thursday which day also produced 6 BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES still off Fort Tilden.

Late landbirds in city parks featured BLUE-HEADED VIREO, 2 ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS and 2 BALTIMORE ORIOLES in Prospect Park Brooklyn Wednesday, 2 or 3 ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS in Kissena Park Queens back on the 24th of November and a NASHVILLE WARBLER in Valley Stream State Park Thanksgiving Day.

Out east the SANDHILL CRANE appeared last Sunday along Dune Road west of the Ponquogue Bridge in Shinnecock last seen flying to the northwest.

Decent activity off the south fork featured last Sunday an immature LITTLE GULL off Montauk Point along with 300 plus BONAPARTE'S GULLS and 45 BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES. The CACKLING GOOSE also continued on the pastures at Deep Hollow Ranch on the south side of Route 27 at least to Sunday when a NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOW was studied there as well. A LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL continues along the shore at Fort Pond Bay. A PARASITIC JAEGER was off Amagansett Thanksgiving Day along with 8 BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES and off Main Beach in East Hampton highlights included an immature ICELAND GULL last Friday followed on Saturday by an adult male KING EIDER, an immature LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL and 28 BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES.

A CATTLE EGRET remains at Mecox Bay Dairy along Mecox Road at least to Wednesday and good numbers of COMMON EIDER, both RED-THROATED LOON and COMMON LOON and NORTHERN GANNETS continue along the south side of eastern Long Island.

At Iron Pier at the end of Pier Avenue in Northville gulls featured an ICELAND GULL on Tuesday and a LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL on Wednesday.

To phone in reports on Long Island, call Tony Lauro at (631) 734-4126, or weekdays call Tom Burke at (212) 372-1483.

This service is sponsored by the Linnaean Society of New York and the National Audubon Society.

- End transcript