New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, October 22, 2010:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Oct. 22, 2010
* NYNY1010.22

- Birds mentioned

Snow Goose
EURASIAN WIGEON
Common Eider
Surf Scoter
White-winged Scoter
Black Scoter
Northern Gannet
Rough-legged Hawk
American Golden-Plover
American Oystercatcher
Willet (subspecies "Western Willet")
MARBLED GODWIT
White-rumped Sandpiper
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Royal Tern
PARASITIC JAEGER
Short-eared Owl
Blue-headed Vireo
Tree Swallow
Winter Wren
Eastern Bluebird
Wood Thrush
American Pipit
Orange-crowned Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Northern Parula
Cape May Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
PROTHONOTARY WARBLER
Northern Waterthrush
Hooded Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
CLAY-COLORED SPARROW
Vesper Sparrow
Fox Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow
Lapland Longspur
Snow Bunting
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
BLUE GROSBEAK
DICKCISSEL
Eastern Meadowlark
Rusty Blackbird
Baltimore Oriole
Purple Finch
Pine Siskin

- 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, October 22nd 2010 at 8pm. The highlights of today's tape are a friendly PROTHONOTARY WARBLER, MARBLED GODWIT, EURASIAN WIGEON, PARASITIC JAEGER, CLAY-COLORED SPARROW, DICKCISSEL, BLUE GROSBEAK and many other Fall migrants.

In a week enjoying 2 good flights with one earlier in the week followed by another today certainly the biggest surprise of the week was a male PROTHONOTARY WARBLER found Thursday in the plantings around the main entrance of the New York Public Library off 5th Ave. at 41st St. Sometimes the warbler even feeding on scraps on the library's steps, amazing.

The city parks enjoyed a nice variety of seasonal migrants this week, many in good numbers, sparrows were well represented with the first FOX SPARROWS appearing and some LINCOLN'S SPARROWS continuing.

Prospect Park was treated to 3 VESPER SPARROWS on Tuesday when an ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER was also found there and Wednesday provided such birds as BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER, NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH, WOOD THRUSH, BALTIMORE ORIOLE, ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK as well as the ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER.

The variety of warblers in Central Park included NASHVILLE WARBLER, a few CAPE MAY WARBLERS, BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER, BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER, NORTHERN PARULA, NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH and WILSON'S WARBLER and other migrants featured BLUE-HEADED VIREO, EASTERN BLUEBIRD, AMERICAN PIPIT and good numbers of PURPLE FINCHES.

Another ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER was found in Riverside Park on Tuesday.

Many birders venture out to the outer beaches this time of year where the early morning flights under the right conditions can be spectacular with flocks of many species in different families pouring overhead and the ground sometimes covered with sparrows, kinglets, Yellow-rumped Warblers and some hoped for surprises.

Robert Moses State Park on the western end of Fire Island has been quite productive lately. Last Saturday an offshore flight included 7 PARASITIC JAEGERS harassing Forster's Terns and Laughing Gulls close to shore and also noted were 225 NORTHERN GANNETS, 3 species of scoters (WHITE-WINGED SCOTER, SURF SCOTER & BLACK SCOTER), and 14 ROYAL TERNS. The SHORT-EARED OWL near field 5 was followed on Sunday by 2 near the golf course at field 2. On Sunday the early morning flight featured 28 PINE SISKINS, 65 PURPLE FINCHES plus some species such as AMERICAN PIPIT, EASTERN MEADOWLARK and RUSTY BLACKBIRD and a CLAY-COLORED SPARROW was found at field 2. On Monday a BLUE GROSBEAK appeared as Moses field 2 with a VESPER SPARROW there Thursday and a LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL on the field 2 parking lot today. SNOW BUNTING was also noted Monday.

Jones Beach West End often mirrors the Moses flight with some differences including more shorebirds. Last Sunday a MARBLED GODWIT was present again with many AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHERS and a few "Western" WILLETS on the bar off the Coast Guard Station with an AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER there Wednesday. Also on Wednesday a PARASITIC JAEGER and 2 ROYAL TERNS were spotted offshore and 4 LAPLAND LONGSPURS appeared around the swale in front of the West End field 2 concession building and 2 just flying by. Morning flights at Jones Beach West End have also featured some AMERICAN PIPITS, many PURPLE FINCHES and lesser numbers of PINE SISKINS. On Monday 2 WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPERS and a COMMON EIDER were present at West End and a LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was on the field 2 parking lot Wednesday with a VESPER SPARROW by the West End turnaround today and a few thousand TREE SWALLOWS have recently been hawking insects over the dunes there.

On Sunday a LAPLAND LONGSPUR was at the rock pile at Point Lookout Town Park and 12 PINE SISKINS were feeding in a pine at Gilgo the same day.

At Fort Tilden last Sunday there were 2 VESPER SPARROWS in the community garden and a YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT nearby and other migrants included 3 ROYAL TERNS, 20 PINE SISKINS, 100 PURPLE FINCHES plus RUSTY BLACKBIRD.

A DICKCISSEL outside the visitors center at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge Tuesday was a highlight there. Some SNOW GEESE have also arrived at the bay that day while a HOODED WARBLER visited a Broad Channel home on Wednesday.

Two AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER were on the beach off parking field 8 at Heckscher State Park Monday other reports included 2 FOX SPARROWS, 2 LINCOLN'S SPARROWS and a WINTER WREN at Caumsett State Park Monday and another VESPER SPARROW at David Weld Sanctuary at Nissequogue on Sunday. At Rockland Lake State Park in Rockland County a EURASIAN WIGEON was found last Sunday and single ROUGH-LEGGED HAWKS flew by at adjacent Hook Mountain on Sunday and 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. Thank you for calling.

- End transcript