New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, January 28, 2011:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* January 28, 2011
* NYNY1101.28

- Birds Mentioned:
Trumpeter Swan+
Common Murre+
Thick-billed Murre+
VARIED THRUSH+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE
Wood Duck
King Eider
Harlequin Duck
BARROW'S GOLDENEYE
American Bittern
Black Vulture
Red-shouldered Hawk
Clapper Rail
LITTLE GULL
Iceland Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Glaucous Gull
Black-legged Kittiwake
Razorbill
Short-eared Owl
NORTHERN SHRIKE
Lapland Longspur


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 28th, at 9:00pm. The highlights of today's tape are VARIED THRUSH, LITTLE GULL, BARROW'S GOLDENEYE, GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE, NORTHERN SHRIKE, and pelagic trip results.

Last weekend much of the area's excitement was centered out east on Long Island: the sea duck spectacle, with tens of thousands of birds involved as they constantly cycled around Montauk Point in their feeding routine, included two KING EIDERS found off the lighthouse last Saturday. Over 30 RAZORBILLS, and an adult LITTLE GULL among the Bonaparte's feeding offshore, added to the variety.

The immature ICELAND GULL was still along the beach west of the Montauk Harbor inlet last weekend, and the Fort Pond Bay LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was seen Saturday on the ice on Fort Pond.

At Napeague the NORTHERN SHRIKE was seen Saturday at the end of Lazy Point Road, and on Sunday, farther down the same road, before it hits Napeague Meadow Road, as this bird continues to range around quite a bit.

The drake BARROW'S GOLDENEYE was still around the southwest corner of Noyack Bay, just east of Noyack last Saturday, keeping company with a number of Common Goldeneye. This area is best viewed along the western end of Long Beach parking lot that parallels Long Beach Road, Route 60. This spot provides a good panorama of the south end of the bay.

In East Hampton two GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE were seen on the pond on the north side of Dunemere Lane, just north of Hook Pond, on Saturday, and the next day they were with Canadas on the south side of Further Lane, this spot not as visible as the usual field across the street.

Highlights along Dune Road, west of Shinnecock Inlet at low tide last Saturday included AMERICAN BITTERN, three CLAPPER RAILS, and SHORT-EARED OWL.

Two TRUMPETER SWANS on Swan Lake on the east side of Patchhogue Saturday may be the same two previously on Upper Lake in Yaphank.

The VARIED THRUSH was still in Central Park yesterday, continuing next to the maintenance shed that contains the rest rooms. The thrush is usually in the brushy area on the east or right side of the building, which is just south of the 79th Street Transverse across the park. The closest park entrance is at 5th Avenue and 79th Street. Take the path in just south of 79th Street and continue to the maintenance area, which is just across the Central Park north roadway [aka East Drive]. A BLACK VULTURE was also seen over the park on Thursday, and two drake WOOD DUCKS continued at The Pond [located at the southeast corner of the park]. We have no recent word on the immature Red-headed Woodpecker along the south side of the Sheep Meadow.

A pelagic trip Sunday from Freeport aboard the Captain Lou VII ventured about 20 miles out in punishing conditions and did record one THICK-BILLED MURRE and 31 COMMON MURRES, 27 RAZORBILLS, and 66 other large but unidentified alcids. Gulls included one GLAUCOUS GULL, one ICELAND GULL, two LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS, and 21 BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES. This trip was sponsored by See Life Paulagics, and a second trip is scheduled on the same boat out of Freeport on February 13th. For more information, visit their website at http://www.paulagics.com .

At Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn a LAPLAND LONGSPUR was present last Saturday, and a RED-SHOULDERED HAWK has been frequenting that area, with another across the bridge at Fort Tilden, where a drake HARLEQUIN DUCK remains along the jetties off the fishermen's parking lot. An ICELAND GULL was also seen at Fort Tilden on Wednesday.

A LAPLAND LONGSPUR was with Horned Larks in the field 2 parking lot at Jones Beach West End last Sunday.

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 ~