New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, May 10, 2013:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* May. 10, 2013
* NYNY1305.10

- Birds mentioned

SWALLOW-TAILED KITE+
RUFF+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

MANX SHEARWATER
Double-crested Cormorant
GOLDEN EAGLE
Willet
Bonaparte's Gull
Iceland Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Least Tern
Caspian Tern
Common Tern
Black Skimmer
PARASITIC JAEGER
RED-HEADED WOODPECKER
Least Flycatcher
Red-eyed Vireo
Veery
Golden-winged Warbler
Tennessee Warbler
Cape May Warbler
YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER
Bay-breasted Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
PROTHONOTARY WARBLER
Worm-eating Warbler
Hooded Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Canada Warbler
Summer Tanager
Scarlet Tanager
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
RED CROSSBILL

- 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:

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

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

BEGIN TAPE

Greetings. This is the New York Rare Bird Alert for Friday, May 10th 2013 at 6pm. The highlights of today's tape are RUFF, SWALLOW-TAILED KITE, GOLDEN EAGLE, MANX SHEARWATER, PARASITIC JAEGER, PROTHONOTARY WARBLER, YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER and fortunately many other arriving warblers, RED-HEADED WOODPECKER and RED CROSSBILL.

It was an old lesson relearned. After a prolonged period of poor to non-existent migration, such as we've had recently, some calling it the worst in several decades. If you wake up in the morning to heavy fog and intermittent rain coming from the south get yourself outside.

Parks only hosting breeding warblers through Wednesday on Thursday morning found 15 to 20 species of warblers and a nice variety of other migrants present. Many of these stayed over to Friday and lots more came in overnight. Finally!

During these pushes real rarities are seldom seen but one was reported this morning. A SWALLOW-TAILED KITE flying over Kissena Park in Queens though we have no details on this sighting.

In Central Park well over 20 species of warblers were present today including new arrivals TENNESSEE, BAY-BREASTED, CANADA and WILSON'S as well as CAPE MAY, HOODED and WORM-EATING and SUMMER TANAGER was also found among the good assortment of migrants that included a good number of SCARLET TANAGERS and ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAKS.

Other notable sightings in the city today included a RED-HEADED WOODPECKER at Owl's Head Park in Brooklyn and a GOLDEN-WINGED WARBLER at Brooklyn's Green-wood Cemetery. In Prospect Park a YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER, presumably lingering, was seen irregularly Sunday to Thursday last near the Lullwater and a PROTHONOTARY WARBLER was on the Peninsula last Sunday.

Clove Lakes Park on Staten Island last Saturday had a nice combination of PROTHONOTARY WARBLER, YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER and WORM-EATING WARBLERS.

In one of the most interesting reports from the week involved an immature GOLDEN EAGLE passing over Central Park Monday morning.

Interestingly, despite the continued north and east winds, just slightly north of the city such regional specialties as GOLDEN-WINGED, CERULEAN, WORM-EATING and HOODED WARBLERS were already on territory last weekend.

The 2 RUFFS at Timber Point Golf Course were still present Tuesday afternoon. To look for them enter the golf club from Great River Road and follow the signs to the East Marina. Search the marsh from the boat dock next to the parking lot.

Ocean watching for pelagics should be productive in the upcoming month of June. Last Friday afternoon 3 MANX SHEARWATERS along with a few LEAST and COMMON TERNS were spotted off Amagansett and 3 PARASITIC JAEGERS appeared off the Rockaways on Wednesday. Unfortunately, one of the best observation sites at Robert Moses State Park parking field 2 is not available due to Sandy damage but many sites are available from Jones Beach field 6 east to Cupsogue County Park, Shinnecock Inlet, East Hampton's Main Beach and Montauk Point.

A couple of interesting gulls lately featured an ICELAND GULL Saturday off Amagansett and a LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL at Floyd Bennett Field on Wednesday.

A watch off East Patchogue in Great South Bay Wednesday afternoon produced 2 CASPIAN TERNS as well as over 4,000 DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS, 35 WILLETS, 4 BONAPARTE'S GULLS and other interesting migrants.

Very interesting has been the continuing presence of RED CROSSBILLS in Maple Swamp off Pleasure Drive and Flanders. Thirty-three were counted last Sunday could easily include some breeding birds.

Other recent arrivals have included BLACK SKIMMER at Jones Beach West End Wednesday, LEAST FLYCATCHER, VEERY and RED-EYED VIREO.

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 transcript