New York City Rare Bird Alerts

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, November 30, 2012:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Nov 30, 2012
* NYNY1211.30

- Birds Mentioned:
BARNACLE GOOSE+
PACIFIC LOON+
CAVE SWALLOW+
VIRGINIA'S WARBLER+
PAINTED BUNTING+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE
Snow Goose
Cackling Goose
Eurasian Wigeon
Common Eider
HARLEQUIN DUCK
Red-necked Grebe
Iceland Gull
Black-legged Kittiwake
DOVEKIE
Razorbill
Yellow-breasted Chat
Lapland Longspur
Rusty Blackbird
Red Crossbill
White-winged Crossbill
Common Redpoll
Evening Grosbeak

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:

Gary Chapin - Secretary
NYS Avian Records Committee (NYSARC)
486 High Street
Victor, NY 14564

~ 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, November 30th, at 11:00pm. The highlights of today's tape are VIRGINIA'S WARBLER, PAINTED BUNTING, CAVE SWALLOW, PACIFIC LOON, DOVEKIE, GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE, BARNACLE GOOSE, and HARLEQUIN DUCK.

Firstly, we sadly mention the passing of longtime friend and fellow birder Paul Gillen. We will certainly miss his great finds and friendly companionship, and our deepest condolences go to his family.

The VIRGINIA'S WARBLER at Alley Pond Park in Queens has resurfaced, now apparently covering a wide circuit in the southern part of the park. Starting on Wednesday, when the bird was spotted near Little Alley Pond, the Virginia's has been seen daily in that area, or along the periphery of the baseball field near the handball courts, or back at its previously favored area just below 73rd Avenue around the gully and adjoining shrubby meadow. Given its apparent current range, parking could be done in the 76th Avenue lot, along 73rd Avenue, or in the lot off Winchester Boulevard. The latter would put you closest to the area a female-type PAINTED BUNTING frequented from Sunday afternoon when found, through Monday, this neat bird generally staying on the ground in bushy areas north of the fields near the Winchester parking lot. Also noted recently in Alley were some WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILLS and RUSTY BLACKBIRDS.

Some CAVE SWALLOWS appeared with the north winds last weekend along the south shore of Long Island. A few noted briefly Saturday at Jones Beach West End were presumably part of the group flying around the west side of Jones Inlet and Point Lookout, where a small group even gathered to roost on various houses around the end of Mineola Avenue, forming a heat-conserving mound of swallows on certain ledges.

Also, in the Montauk area, CAVE SWALLOWS last Saturday featured ten in Montauk in the morning, six later at Camp Hero, and five at Napeague late in the afternoon. Also out at Montauk, a possible PACIFIC LOON off the Point last Saturday was confirmed on Sunday off the restaurant, and on Monday a PACIFIC LOON was found in Hart's Cove in the East Moriches. This bird continued in this area through today, viewed generally from the end of various streets in the East Moriches, including Atlantic Avenue, Maple Avenue, and Moriches Island Avenue, the bird presumably moving around with the tides.

RAZORBILLS have been showing up in the Montauk area, with 40+ off the Point Saturday, that day also producing a DOVEKIE flying past the Montauk Harbor Inlet. Also at the Point Saturday were five BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES and two LAPLAND LONGSPURS, and single ICELAND GULLS were noted at the Point and near Montauk Inlet.

A BARNACLE GOOSE has been present for many days with Canadas and occasionally, a CACKLING GOOSE, on the Parade Ground at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx, seen through today. Another BARNACLE and a GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE have been visiting Marratooka Pond off New Suffolk Avenue in Mattituck, these latter geese presumably roosting overnight on Marratooka.

Single drake EURASIAN WIGEON were seen today on Dosoris Pond in Glen Cove and Mill Pond in Sayville.

Two to three HARLEQUIN DUCKS have been present since Sunday between the ocean jetties west of Jones Inlet, and Point Lookout, along with a couple of COMMON EIDER.

Good numbers of RED CROSSBILLS and fewer WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILLS were present at Jones Beach last weekend at the West End, with some still around today. Others have been at various coastal sites out to the Montauk area. A COMMON REDPOLL was also at Jones West End on Saturday.

Prospect Park featured a male EVENING GROSBEAK, a flock of WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILLS, and a continuing YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT on Thursday.

Five GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE were still using the farm field on the north side of Further Lane in East Hampton last Saturday, and a RED-NECKED GREBE and blue SNOW GOOSE were at Hook Pond. Other blue SNOW GEESE have been present at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge.

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 ~