New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, December 4, 2015:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Dec. 4, 2015
* NYNY1512.04

- Birds mentioned

PINK-FOOTED GOOSE+
BARNACLE GOOSE+
AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN+
CAVE SWALLOW+
PAINTED BUNTING+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE
ROSS'S GOOSE
Cackling Goose
TUNDRA SWAN
Eurasian Wigeon
Canvasback
Redhead
Red-throated Loon
MANX SHEARWATER
Northern Gannet
Red Knot
Western Sandpiper
Long-billed Dowitcher
Parasitic Jaeger
RAZORBILL
ICELAND GULL
RED-HEADED WOODPECKER
Orange-crowned Warbler
American Redstart
Magnolia Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
LARK SPARROW

- 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

Greetings. This is the New York Rare Bird Alert for Friday, December 4th 2015 at 6pm. The highlights of today's tape are PAINTED BUNTING, AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN, ROSS'S GOOSE, PINK-FOOTED GOOSE, BARNACLE GOOSE, GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE, CAVE SWALLOW, MANX SHEARWATER, TUNDRA SWAN, ICELAND GULL, RAZORBILL, RED-HEADED WOODPECKER and LARK SPARROW.

Certainly the surprise of the week is the very striking adult male PAINTED BUNTING first spotted last Sunday in Brooklyn's Prospect Park where it is still present today. For most of the week the bird has been feeding on the green roof at the LeFrak Center and Skating Rink. With patience some nice views can be had but the bunting, as this species usually does, spends much of its time in the denser lower portions of the plants, shrubbery and grasses especially on the downward easterly facing slope of the green roof and it can be quite hidden despite its brilliant colors. The center is located in the southeastern portion of Prospect Park just east of Prospect Lake and the roof is reached from various paved paths just east of the skating rink. Please stay on the paved paths and especially if a large number of birders are present assist others in finding the bird.

At Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge two AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS were present at least to Wednesday at the north end of the East Pond. They could usually be seen from the East Pond overlook by Big John's Pond. A good variety of waterfowl has also gathered on the East Pond.

Regarding waterfowl, anyone hoping to see the ROSS'S GOOSE that had been visiting the Riverhead Buffalo Farm off Reeves Avenue would be quite disappointed to learn that it was shot by a hunter last Saturday but a good selection of geese does remain on Long Island.

A BARNACLE GOOSE has been seen both on Marratooka Lake off New Suffolk Avenue in Mattituck where it roosts and feeding with Canadas along Alva's Lane in Cutchogue this a short goose flight from Marratooka. The previously reported PINK-FOOTED GOOSE north of Riverhead was seen last Saturday in the vicinity of Route 105 and Penny's Road off Sound Avenue and may again this Winter be roosting on Merritt's Pond in Riverhead a lake surrounded mostly by private homes. Scattered GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE included up to 3 at Belmont Lake State Park, 3 at Hook Pond or along nearby Further Lane in East Hampton and one on Short's Pond off Scuttlehole Road in Watermill and CACKLING GEESE have been noted at several locations. Four TUNDRA SWANS also continue on Hook Pond in East Hampton. The EURASIAN WIGEON was recently on Seatauk Creek in Islip along with some REDHEADS and CANVASBACKS.

Certainly unusual by date was a MANX SHEARWATER seen during a seawatch off Robert Moses State Park Tuesday morning. Interesting to note that a large number of MANX and other shearwaters were noted off Cape Cod in late November. A seawatch off Amagansett last Sunday morning produced such numbers as 476 RED-THROATED LOONS and 545 NORTHERN GANNETS plus a PARASITIC JAEGER but the real surprise was a group of 5 CAVE SWALLOWS moving east along the beach there. Some RAZORBILLS and an immature ICELAND GULL were seen off Montauk Point last Sunday. Eleven LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS were still along Santapogue Creek in Lindenhurst Sunday and a WESTERN SANDPIPER and some RED KNOT were on the Jones Beach West End sandbar last Saturday.

RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS were still present this week in Central Park's Ramble, at Brooklyn's Green-wood Cemetery and at Willowbrook Park on Staten Island. Also on Staten Island was a LARK SPARROW at Moravian Cemetery last Sunday. The YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT was at Tobay Sunday, ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS occurred at Massapequa Preserve and Hook Pond and other late warblers today included an AMERICAN REDSTART in Central Park and MAGNOLIA and WILSON'S at Kissena Park in Queens.

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