New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, June 25, 2010:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Jun. 25, 2010
* NYNY1006.25

- Birds mentioned

MISSISSIPPI KITE+ (Montgomery County, NY)
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

Wood Duck
Blue-winged Teal
Greater Scaup
Northern Gannet
CATTLE EGRET
Greater Yellowlegs
Red Knot
White-rumped Sandpiper
Dunlin
Short-billed Dowitcher
LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL
GULL-BILLED TERN
Black Tern
Roseate Tern
Forster's Tern
Royal Tern
COMMON RAVEN
Blackpoll Warbler

- 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, June 25th 2010 at 7pm. The highlights of today's tape are LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL, CATTLE EGRET, GULL-BILLED TERN, COMMON RAVEN and extralimital MISSISSIPPI KITE.

A surprisingly slow week, the past 7 days have been very unfruitful for those looking offshore for shearwaters and storm-petrels with little of interest seen on the ocean other than a steady stream of NORTHERN GANNETS. Hopefully conditions will change to produce the expected variety of pelagics.

A watch last Sunday at Robert Moses State Park off field 2 did uncover 3 LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS sitting on the beach there.

At Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge last Sunday a CATTLE EGRET was seen flying over the West Pond around 9:30am perhaps a regular routine for a species possibly nesting in small numbers in egret colonies around Jamaica Bay. Also on Sunday 2 GULL-BILLED TERNS were seen around the south end of the West Pond and off Terrapin Trail. Ducks recently at the bay have featured some WOOD DUCKS and a few BLUE-WINGED TEAL and a lingering GREATER SCAUP and various herons remain in evidence there.

In Roslyn Tuesday 6 COMMON RAVENS were seen in a traditional sight around the tower by the Nassau County Art Museum. Several of the birds were immatures and it was felt that perhaps more than one family group was involved. The pair of ravens in Kew Gardens Queens has apparently successfully fledged their young.

A BLACKPOLL WARBLER, first noted singing in Bryant Park last Friday during a search for the Mourning Warbler, was still singing there on Monday. In addition a female was seen there on Saturday. [Transcribers note: the singing Blackpoll Warbler was heard there again this morning.]

Out east last Saturday an adult ROYAL TERN was at Pike's Beach in Westhampton Dunes and birds on the flats at adjacent Cupsogue County Park featured FORSTER'S TERN and 2 ROSEATE TERNS and among some lingering shorebirds about 10 RED KNOT and an interesting smallish DUNLIN in breeding plumage, one of 5 or so Dunlin present. On Thursday at Cupsogue 2 different ROYAL TERNS were present and today featured single ROYAL and BLACK TERNS, BLUE-WINGED TEAL and some southbound GREATER YELLOWLEGS and SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHERS along with 4 WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPERS.

A pair of MISSISSIPPI KITES continues in the Town of Root, Montgomery County, where patience usually is rewarded with good views in the vicinity of Mapletown and Donato Roads intersection. Hopefully confirmation of nesting activity will be forthcoming.

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 transcript