New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, June 24, 2011:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* June 24, 2011
* NYNY1106.24

- Birds Mentioned:
HOODED CROW+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

Common Eider
CORY'S SHEARWATER
SOOTY SHEARWATER
MANX SHEARWATER
Wilson's Storm-Petrel
Northern Gannet
American Bittern
Least Sandpiper
White-rumped Sandpiper
WILSON'S PHALAROPE
GLAUCOUS GULL
Black Tern
Roseate Tern
Forster's Tern
Royal Tern

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, hard copy reports and photos or sketches are welcome. Hard copy 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

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, June 24th, at 6:00pm. The highlights of today's tape are the presence of a HOODED CROW on Staten Island; WILSON'S PHALAROPES, MANX SHEARWATER, CORY'S SHEARWATER, SOOTY SHEARWATER, and GLAUCOUS GULL.

Certainly most of this past week's attention has centered around a HOODED CROW, present through today at Great Kills Park on Staten Island. An only slightly migratory Eurasian species, this crow's occurrence here is equally as enigmatic as appearances of various exotic waterfowl and other odd jobs in our area. The only two plausible explanations for its presence are that it escaped from somewhere, as they have been kept in captivity, or it hopped a ship and got a ride across the Atlantic either under its own volition or in some restrained manner. Nevertheless, it is a striking crow. To look for it, enter Great Kills Park from Hylan Boulevard, and follow Buffalo Street to the end of the pavement. Park in the lot on the left, and walk the gravel road to Crooke's Point. At the end of this road is a permit-required parking lot for fishermen, and the crow has been around this lot or adjoining woods and beach. It apparently has been present for two weeks or more. NYSARC will ultimately address this bird's status. If at Great Kills, also look for the adult WHITE IBIS that had been in the marshy area on the right, just before the Ranger Station, not reported since May 28th.

At Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, three WILSON'S PHALAROPES showed up at the south end of the West Pond last Sunday, these including a striking female along with two males. At least five WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPERS were also on the West Pond.

On Wednesday evening two ROYAL TERNS and a few ROSEATE TERNS were at Democrat Point at the western tip of Fire Island, and a couple of WILSON'S STORM-PETRELS were off Robert Moses State Park, lot 2, on Saturday.

Further east, on the North Fork, the lingering GLAUCOUS GULL was seen as recently as Monday around the ferry terminal at Orient Point.

At Cupsogue County Park in West Hampton Dunes, morning and evening sea watches last Saturday produced a MANX SHEARWATER in the morning and SOOTY SHEARWATER and some WILSON'S STORM-PETRELS. On the Cupsogue flats in the afternoon were two ROYAL TERNS and two BLACK TERNS, and at least 15 WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPERS were among the shorebirds lingering between there and Pike's Beach just to the east. On Monday the continually shifting numbers of shorebirds and nonbreeding terns included fewer WHITE-RUMPS, but two LEAST SANDPIPERS, plus one BLACK TERN, four ROSEATE TERNS, and seven FORSTER'S TERNS. On Tuesday an AMERICAN BITTERN was flushed from the marsh there.

At Montauk Point Sunday, a moderate number of birds included a CORY'S SHEARWATER working among some fishing boats and 54 COMMON EIDER, with six more COMMON EIDER around Montauk Harbor. Four WILSON'S STORM-PETRELS and two NORTHERN GANNETS were off Culloden Point and about 30 WILSON'S STORM-PETRELS were present off the Camp Hero Overlook at Montauk today.

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~]