New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending August 22, 2014:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Aug. 22, 2014
* NYNY1408.22

- Birds mentioned

Red-necked Grebe
Bald Eagle
AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER
Solitary Sandpiper
Whimbrel
MARBLED GODWIT
BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER
WILSON'S PHALAROPE
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Caspian Tern
Black Tern
Royal Tern
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Common Nighthawk
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
Purple Martin
Blue-winged Warbler
GOLDEN-WINGED WARBLER
Tennessee Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Northern Parula
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER
PROTHONOTARY WARBLER
Worm-eating Warbler
Ovenbird
Mourning Warbler
Hooded Warbler
Canada Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
DICKCISSEL

- 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 nysarc44(at)nybirds{dot}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)
125 Pine Springs Drive
Ticonderoga, NY 12883

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

(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

Greetings. This is the New York Rare Bird Alert for Friday, August 22nd 2014 at 7pm. The highlights of today's tape are Fall shorebirds including AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER, BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER, MARBLED GODWIT, WILSON'S PHALAROPE plus PROTHONOTARY, YELLOW-THROATED and GOLDEN-WINGED WARBLERS and DICKCISSEL.

In a week certainly not as exciting as the one just before it at least shorebird variety continues its late season increase. Now overall numbers have not been terribly impressive lately. Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge where the annual shorebird festival will take place this Saturday the 23rd the East Pond looks to be in great shape as it awaits a decent influx of birds. A MARBLED GODWIT has appeared on the East Pond Thursday and today and a WILSON'S PHALAROPE was present briefly at the pond's south end last Saturday. A CASPIAN and a couple of ROYAL TERNS have also been spotted during the week but perhaps most interesting were a couple of landbirds. A DICKCISSEL along the gravel roadway at the park's north end last Monday and a male PROTHONOTARY WARBLER started near the blind along the west side of the pond above the Raunt overlook back on Friday the 15th.

Among other notable shorebirds on Long Island a BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER found on the 13th at Heckscher State Park was still along the median strip just east of fields 7 and 8 at least to Wednesday.

A MARBLED GODWIT present at Cupsogue County Park in Westhampton Dunes last weekend spent much of its time along with a decent assemblage and variety of other shorebirds on the bars just inside Moriches Inlet a little west of the traditional flats north of the parking lot. Some birds did move to these flats as the inlet bars covered over on the rising tide. The inlet flats are viewable from the beach on the east side of the inlet reached from the four wheel drive road west of the parking lot. Today 5 additional MARBLED GODWITS stopped by briefly on the flats before continuing east at Cupsogue. Also at Cupsogue Sunday were a BLACK TERN and up to a dozen ROYAL TERNS. Another MARBLED GODWIT and 11 BLACK TERNS were at Shinnecock Inlet today.

Three AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVERS showed up Sunday on the Riverhead sod fields along the west side of Route 105 just before it ends at Sound Avenue and these have increased to 5 as of today.

At least one WHIMBREL has been at Cedar Point County Park in Southold on the north fork recently.

The YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER was a great find Saturday at Robert Moses State Park the bird in pines along the north side of parking lot 2 and also quite notable was a PROTHONOTARY WARBLER spotted at Montauk Point State Park last Sunday.

A very noticeable lack of insects recently throughout much of our area has birders wondering whether this will have an adverse impact on Fall migration. Time will tell but a decent variety of warblers recently mostly species breeding not too far north of the city have featured a GOLDEN-WINGED in Prospect Park last Saturday, single MOURNING WARBLERS Monday in Prospect Park and at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge and a YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT at Fort Tilden Saturday still a great bird even if no longer considered a warbler. Other warblers have included OVENBIRD, several WORM-EATING, TENNESSEE, NASHVILLE, BLUE-WINGED, NORTHERN PARULA, MAGNOLIA, BLACKBURNIAN, BLACK-THROATEDS BLUE and GREEN, YELLOW-RUMPED, CHESTNUT-SIDED, HOODED and CANADA.

Other migrants noted lately have included YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO, COMMON NIGHTHAWKS beginning their late August to early September push, YELLOW-BELLIED FLYCATCHER and various swallows and PURPLE MARTINS. A couple of BALD EAGLES have moved through recently as the hawk migration season will soon begin in earnest.

A RED-NECKED GREBE was still at Mecox Bay last Saturday, one BLACK TERN and a LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was also noted at Jones Beach West End, 2 SOLITARY SANDPIPERS at Jones Beach Thursday were unusual there.

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