New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, May 7, 2010:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* May 07, 2010
* NYNY1005.07

- Birds Mentioned:

WHITE-WINGED DOVE+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

Harlequin Duck
MANX SHEARWATER
Bald Eagle
SANDHILL CRANE
Upland Sandpiper
Whimbrel
Red Knot
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
White-rumped Sandpiper
Short-billed Dowitcher
Iceland Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Least Tern
Gull-billed Tern
Common Tern
Razorbill
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Whip-poor-will
Red-headed Woodpecker
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Least Flycatcher
Purple Martin
Bank Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Gray-cheeked Thrush
Swainson's Thrush
Golden-winged Warbler (Orange County)
Tennessee Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler
Cape May Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER
Bay-breasted Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
PROTHONOTARY WARBLER
Worm-eating Warbler
Louisiana Waterthrush
Kentucky Warbler
Mourning Warbler
Hooded Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Canada Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
SUMMER TANAGER
Scarlet Tanager
Nelson's Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
BLUE GROSBEAK
Indigo Bunting
Boat-tailed Grackle
Orchard Oriole
Baltimore Oriole

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 nysarc1 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

~ Transcript ~

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

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

Compilers: Tom Burke, Tony Lauro
Coverage: New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
Transcriber: Karen Fung

[~BEGIN RBA TAPE~]

Greetings. This is the New York Rare Bird Alert for Friday, May 7th, at 7:00 pm. Before commencing the tape, it is with great sorrow that we mention the sudden passing of Matt Bayer, an energetic birder and superb naturalist. Matt will be greatly missed by all of us who roam Long Island, and our deepest condolences go out to Matt's family.

The highlights of today's tape are WHITE-WINGED DOVE, SANDHILL CRANE, MANX SHEARWATER, PROTHONOTARY WARBLER, YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER, SUMMER TANAGER, BLUE GROSBEAK, and many Spring migrants.

On Sunday morning a WHITE-WINGED DOVE was spotted sitting in with rock pigeons near the rest rooms by the Coast Guard Station at Jones Beach West End. Once it flew off, the dove could not be relocated. Also at West End, up to four GULL-BILLED TERNS have been present, often on the bar off the Coast Guard Station. An increasing variety of shorebirds there recently included many RED KNOTS and SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHERS, and COMMON TERNS and LEAST TERNS are also showing up. A LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was noted at West End field 2 Monday.

On Monday morning an adult SANDHILL CRANE visited the field at Marshlands Conservancy in Rye, and an immature male BLUE GROSBEAK appeared there this morning. A pair of BOAT-TAILED GRACKLES has also been frequenting the marsh at Marshlands recently.

The city parks have recently enjoyed a good diversity of migrants, though the early leaf out of the trees has not helped visibility. Almost all the warblers have appeared, some seemingly early, like BLACKPOLL WARBLER and CANADA WARBLER last Saturday, and BAY-BREASTED WARBLER, CAPE MAY WARBLER and WILSON'S WARBLER quickly thereafter. Decent numbers have been noted of many species, but they do seem to be moving through quickly with the weather pattern. Among the rarer warblers, a YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER was spotted yesterday morning at the north end of Central Park near the Pool, between 101st and 103rd Streets. Previously unreported PROTHONOTARY WARBLERS were found at Clove Lakes Park on Staten Island last Saturday, and noted briefly in Prospect Park Tuesday by a birder hustling in to see the WHIP-POOR-WILL near Boulder Bridge. Another WHIP-POOR-WILL was reported from the north end of Central Park on Monday. Also in Central Park, a KENTUCKY WARBLER appeared near Tanner's Spring on Monday, with another KENTUCKY today, along with a singing MOURNING WARBLER in Alley Pond Park. Other species noted in Central and Prospect Parks have included one or two TENNESSEE WARBLERS, some BLACKBURNIAN WARBLERS, a CERULEAN WARBLER at Cherry Hill in Central Park Sunday, WORM-EATING WARBLER, a lingering LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH or two, and HOODED WARBLER. YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT was also reported from Central Park Sunday, but most unusual this spring has been the number of ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS. Two were seen in the same tree last Saturday in Prospect Park, and in Forest Park one began singing last Saturday in shrubbery at the water hole and continued there at least to Tuesday. Clove Lakes Park also produced CERULEAN and HOODED WARBLERS Saturday, and as an indication that parts of the migration at least are bypassing the City, last Sunday, May 2nd, warblers on territory at Sterling Forest State Park in Orange County included good numbers of GOLDEN-WINGED WARBLERS, CERULEAN WARBLERS, HOODED WARBLERS and other breeders. SUMMER TANAGER reports from Sunday included Central and Prospect Park as well as Riverside Park in northern Manhattan, and good numbers of SCARLET TANAGERS, BALTIMORE ORIOLES, ORCHARD ORIOLES, ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAKS, and INDIGO BUNTINGS have arrived this week. Also being seen are some YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOOS, EASTERN WOOD-PEWEE, LEAST FLYCATCHER, five species of Vireos, PURPLE MARTIN, CLIFF SWALLOW, BANK SWALLOW, SWAINSON'S THRUSH, GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH (the latter as of today in Central Park), and LINCOLN'S SPARROW. One or two adult RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS have also been spotted during the week in Central Park. Shorebirds have included an UPLAND SANDPIPER at Calvert Vaux Park last Saturday and WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPER at Plumb Beach Thursday (these both in Brooklyn), and LEAST SANDPIPER and SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge last Saturday.

Another RED-HEADED WOODPECKER was seen flying west at Robert Moses State Park Sunday during an interesting sustained westbound movement of migrants there.

Out East, a MANX SHEARWATER and three WHIMBREL were seen Sunday off Montauk Point, with three RAZORBILLS and an ICELAND GULL there Saturday, and three HARLEQUIN DUCKS at Turtle Cove both days. Napeague Sunday produced a BALD EAGLE and a NELSON'S SPARROW, while on Saturday an immature male BLUE GROSBEAK was found at Camp Hero in Montauk.

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. Thank you for calling.

[~END TAPE~]

~ End Transcript ~