New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, January 8, 2010:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* January 7, 2011
* NYNY1101.07

- Birds Mentioned:

AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN+
TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE+
VARIED THRUSH+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

Greater White-fronted Goose
Cackling Goose
Tundra Swan
Eurasian Wigeon
Redhead
TUFTED DUCK
King Eider
Harlequin Duck
BARROW'S GOLDENEYE
Red-necked Grebe
American Bittern
Great Egret
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Red-shouldered Hawk
Clapper Rail
American Oystercatcher
Red Knot
Wilson's Snipe
American Woodcock
BLACK-HEADED GULL
Iceland Gull
Glaucous Gull
Black-legged Kittiwake
DOVEKIE
Razorbill
Barn Owl
Short-eared Owl
Red-headed Woodpecker
Common Raven
Tree Swallow
Orange-crowned Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
LARK SPARROW
Dickcissel
Common Redpoll
Pine Siskin


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
Tony Lauro (631) 734-4126

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, January 7th, at 7:00pm. The highlights of today's tape are TUFTED DUCK, TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE, VARIED THRUSH, AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN, DOVEKIES, BARROW'S GOLDENEYE, BLACK-HEADED GULLS, LARK SPARROW, and more.

The Southern Nassau Christmas Count last Saturday recorded 125 species. Highlights included GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE, 2 TUNDRA SWANS, 6 HARLEQUIN DUCKS at Point Lookout, a GREAT EGRET, RED-SHOULDERED HAWK, 29 AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHERS, 8 RED KNOTS, 1 WILSON'S SNIPE, 2 AMERICAN WOODCOCK, 3 RAZORBILLS, 1 SHORT-EARED OWL, 5 BARN OWLS, 2 TREE SWALLOWS, 3 ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS, a YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT at Massapequa Preserve, 12 COMMON REDPOLLS, and 4 PINE SISKINS. Interesting count period birds included a DICKCISSEL at a feeder prior to the count; a DOVEKIE Monday as it swam into the cove by the Jones Beach West End Coast Guard Station, crawled up on the sand bar and unfortunately passed away; and a drake EURASIAN WIGEON seen on Massapequa Lake on Monday and still present Wednesday, this lake on the north side of Route 27A Merrick Road, just east of Seaford.

The Orient Christmas Count Saturday recorded drake BARROW'S GOLDENEYE usually on the bay along the east end of the Route 25 causeway between East Marion and Orient, GREAT EGRET, RED-NECKED GREBE, GLAUCOUS GULL usually around the Orient Ferry Terminal, RAZORBILL, YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT, and most unexpected, a TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE reported on a field edge off Albert's Lane on the south side of Route 25 in Greenport. The solitaire has been looked for but not relocated since.

A drake TUFTED DUCK was found Tuesday in Cold Spring Harbor as viewed from dockage on the east side of the bay across from the parking lot for Cold Spring Harbor State Park off Route 25A, this just north of the Harbor Mist building. The tufted is traveling with a small group of Greater Scaup, and has been moving about this fairly extensive bay, so seeking other vantage points might also be productive, but much of the property bordering the harbor is private. The tufted was still present there today.

The Central Park VARIED THRUSH was still present around the maintenance area and field today. This area, just south of the 79th Street Transverse, can be reached by taking the path from 5th Avenue on the south side of 79th Street, continuing across the East Drive to the maintenance buildings. Look especially on the upward slope north of the path, and along the small field on the south side, though the thrush does move around. The immature RED-HEADED WOODPECKER also continues around the southeast corner of the Sheep Meadow, just north of the 66th Street Transverse. One or two PINE SISKINS have been seen at the Ramble feeders recently, and an ICELAND GULL flyover was reported from Sunday.

Two BLACK-HEADED GULLS continue in Brooklyn. On Tuesday both were roosting on Veterans Memorial Pier at the foot of Bay Ridge Avenue in Bay Ridge. This area is near Owls Head Park and wastewater treatment plant where the gulls have also been seen.

Thursday afternoon an AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN was seen soaring over Floyd Bennett Field, eventually heading east.

A male HARLEQUIN DUCK remains near the Fort Tilden jetties.

Moving east on Long Island, over 50 REDHEAD were on Capri Pond off Montauk Highway, Route 27A, a little west of the Robert Moses Expressway on Monday.

A LARK SPARROW continues at the Calverton Grasslands, usually along the chain-linked fence with other sparrows on the north side of Grumman Boulevard between the current entrance to this complex and the closed entrance a little to the left.

In the Montauk area Thursday, a DOVEKIE was a little east of the trailer park at Ditch Plains, and many RAZORBILLS continue offshore. A female KING EIDER was off Montauk Beach, and two BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES and a RED-NECKED GREBE were seen off the Point.

Dune Road west of Shinnecock Inlet has been productive lately. Birds included AMERICAN BITTERN, SHORT-EARED OWL, CLAPPER RAIL, ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER and various marsh sparrows.

At Connetquot River State Park Thursday highlights were a CACKLING GOOSE, OSPREY, and an immature BALD EAGLE, and two COMMON RAVENS were seen again at Rocky Point Preserve in Middle Island, also on Thursday.

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 ~