New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, February 17, 2012:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Feb. 17, 2012
* NYNY1202.17

- Birds mentioned

RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

Greater White-fronted Goose
Harlequin Duck
BARROW'S GOLDENEYE
Rough-legged Hawk
Piping Plover
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Wilson's Snipe
BLACK-HEADED GULL
Iceland Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Glaucous Gull
Razorbill
SNOWY OWL
Red-headed Woodpecker
Common Raven
YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT

- 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

[Editor's note: I received a note correcting the location of the Long Island COMMON RAVENS. They are at Hampton Bays not West Hampton.]

BEGIN TAPE

Greetings. This is the New York Rare Bird Alert for Friday, February 17th 2012 at 11pm. The highlights of today's tape are RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD, SNOWY OWL, BARROW'S GOLDENEYE, BLACK-HEADED GULL and YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT.

The RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD continues its extended visit today at the American Museum of Natural History at the entrance area to the planetarium and the RED-HEADED WOODPECKER was seen today at nearby Central Park at the northwest corner of the Hallett Sanctuary in the southeastern corner of the park.

Two SNOWY OWLS were reported last week: one at Lazy Point Napeague on Saturday and the other at Breezy Point on Wednesday.

The BARROW'S GOLDENEYE continues to be seen through the week at the West Pond Jamaica Bay.

A BLACK-HEADED GULL was found last Saturday at Veteran's Memorial Pier at 69th Street and Shore Road in Bay Ridge Brooklyn.

Two YELLOW-BREASTED CHATS were seen last week: one at Hempstead Lake State Park on Long Island Tuesday along Lakeside Drive north of the south pond and the other today at the southeast corner of Union Square Park Manhattan.

Other interesting birds reported last week were a GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE at Van Cortlandt Park in The Bronx from Saturday through Monday and another at Hook Pond East Hampton also on Saturday

Scattered groups of RAZORBILLS were seen. One group of 3 off Coney Island on Saturday, 2 at Pelham Bay Park on Sunday, 9 off a jetty at Shinnecock on Wednesday and another 9 at the Jones Beach Inlet on Wednesday. Also seen at the Jones Inlet were 3 HARLEQUIN DUCKS and the previously reported PIPING PLOVER and SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER at the north end of the west jetty.

Two GLAUCOUS GULLS were seen at the Bellport Bay Yacht Club at the end of Bellport Lane in Bellport on Saturday and an ICELAND GULL was seen at the first parking lot south of the Verrazzano Bridge on Saturday, another first year ICELAND GULL was seen at the Coast Guard island at Jones Beach West End on Sunday. The winter resident LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was seen at Napeague on Saturday. Another LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was at the Jones Beach Inlet east of field 2 on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Two pairs of COMMON RAVENS were seen last week presumably in the nest building activity. One pair were at the water tower at 100 Elgar Place Co-op City in The Bronx and the other pair were at the water authority property in Hampton Bays where they were seen last year.

Two WILSON'S SNIPE were south of the highway at the Forge River east of Mastic on Long Island on Sunday and a ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK was seen near the Orchard Beach Bridge to City Island in The Bronx on Sunday.

Tom Burke will be away this coming week. Please call in reports to Tony Lauro at (631) 734-4126.

This service is sponsored by the Linnaean Society of New York and the National Audubon Society. Thank you for calling.

- End transcript