New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, May 14, 2010:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* May 14, 2010
* NYNY1005.14

- Birds Mentioned:

WHITE-FACED IBIS+
WILSON'S PLOVER+
BICKNELL'S THRUSH+
FOX SPARROW+ (Western race, probable "Sooty" form)
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

Bald Eagle
White-rumped Sandpiper
LITTLE GULL
Iceland Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Glaucous Gull
Gull-billed Tern
Black Tern
Roseate Tern
Black Skimmer
Jaeger species
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Olive-sided Flycatcher
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
Philadelphia Vireo
Cliff Swallow
Gray-cheeked Thrush
Tennessee Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler
Cape May Warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
Bay-breasted Warbler
Worm-eating Warbler
Kentucky Warbler
Mourning Warbler
Hooded Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Summer Tanager
Lincoln's Sparrow
Blue Grosbeak

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 14th, at 9:00 pm. The highlights of today's tape are WILSON'S PLOVER, WHITE-FACED IBIS, "SOOTY" FOX SPARROW, LITTLE GULL, and many Spring migrants.

Last Saturday a female type WILSON'S PLOVER was found on the bar off the Jones Beach West End Coast Guard Station and then, after it flew, skillfully relocated by the discoverer in the rather flooded swale in front of the West End 2 concession building. Despite the horrendous winds, a number of birders enjoyed the bird before nightfall, but it could not be relocated on subsequent days.

Unfortunately not making last week's tape was the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge WHITE-FACED IBIS, spotted last Friday at the north end of the West Pond, but fortunately it was seen again Thursday morning in the marsh south of the West Pond, where it had also previously occurred in late April.

Perhaps the most interesting of this week's rarities is a FOX SPARROW found Thursday at Strawberry Fields in Central Park. Appearing to be a "Sooty" form of Fox Sparrow, which may be elevated to full species status in the near future, the sparrow was still present today, and spends its time foraging in leaf litter under bushes on the eastern downslope of Strawberry Fields, located a short distance straight into the park from the West 72nd Street entrance off Central Park West. This bird is definitely worth seeing.

Otherwise it was a great week for seasonal migrants, common and uncommon, especially today as the incoming front brought with it a wide variety of birds in decent numbers.

In Central Park, as our local migration barometer, today produced good numbers of warblers including several TENNESSEE WARBLERS, BAY-BREASTED WARBLERS, and CAPE MAY WARBLERS along with a couple of MOURNING WARBLERS, plus WORM-EATING WARBLER, HOODED WARBLER, and YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT. A singing PHILADELPHIA VIREO and a male SUMMER TANAGER added to the excitement, and also present were GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH and LINCOLN'S SPARROW. Many birds were seen around a termite hatch-out, an often very productive phenomenon. A KENTUCKY WARBLER was in the Ramble Thursday, and another at the north end last Saturday. An OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER and YELLOW-BELLIED FLYCATCHER were among the flycatchers seen this week, with a male BLUE GROSBEAK in the Ramble Tuesday. Four CLIFF SWALLOWS were seen over the Lake early in the week.

Prospect Park also had a good week, with a BICKNELL'S THRUSH identified Tuesday, and birds today included BALD EAGLE, OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER and MOURNING WARBLER.

Riverside Park in northern Manhattan has entertained an immature male BLUE GROSBEAK Thursday and today, and also featured YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO Friday and TENNESSEE WARBLER Thursday.

In Forest Park an ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER was still around the water hole yesterday, the park also hosting OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER and YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO last Saturday and lots of warblers since.

A female SUMMER TANAGER was in Alley Pond Park Monday, preceded by a male in Tobay Sanctuary's Pine Grove Sunday and followed by one at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge near Big John's Pond on Thursday.

A KENTUCKY WARBLER was found at Valley Stream State Park on Monday. Alley Pond Park also featured KENTUCKY and MOURNING WARBLERS last Saturday, the MOURNING lingering to Sunday.

A BLUE GROSBEAK has stayed in the vicinity of the entrance booth at Robert Moses State Park field 2 from Wednesday through today. BLUE GROSBEAK was also noted at Hoyt Farm Park in Commack Thursday, and reports from the Quogue Wildlife Refuge mentioned a YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER Thursday and MOURNING WARBLER Friday.

An immature LITTLE GULL, a GLAUCOUS GULL, three GULL-BILLED TERNS and five BLACK TERNS were among the birds reported Thursday at Breezy Point where a JAEGER had been noted Monday along with three ROSEATE TERNS, and two LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS were seen Wednesday. Other ROSEATE TERNS have been scattered along the coast recently, and two BLACK SKIMMERS were at Riis Park Thursday.

An ICELAND GULL appeared Saturday at Jones Beach West End and then at field 10 Jones Beach, and two LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS were in the Jones Beach West End swale on Wednesday where two GULL-BILLED TERNS visited Saturday. Ten WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPERS were among the good collection of seasonal shorebirds at Jones Beach West End Tuesday.

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 ~