New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, January 15, 2016:

-RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Jan. 15, 2016
* NYNY1601.15

- Birds Mentioned

ROSS’S GOOSE+
PINK-FOOTED GOOSE+
BARNACLE GOOSE+
WESTERN GREBE+
COMMON MURRE+
THICK-BILLED MURRE+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

Greater White-fronted Goose
Cackling Goose
Canada Goose
Tundra Swan
Eurasian Wigeon
KING EIDER
Harlequin Duck
BARROW’S GOLDENEYE
RED-NECKED GREBE
NORTHERN FULMAR
Manx Shearwater
Northern Gannet
Razorbill
BLACK GUILLEMOT
Black-legged Kittiwake
BLACK-HEADED GULL
Iceland Gull
Glaucous Gull
SNOWY OWL
Red-headed Woodpecker
American Pipit
Yellow Warbler
CLAY-COLORED SPARROW
LARK SPARROW
Dark-eyed Junco
DICKCISSEL

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 nysarc44nybirdsorg

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

Compiler: Tom Burke, Tony Lauro
Coverage: New York City, Long Island, Westchester County

Transcriber: Gail Benson

[~BEGIN RBA TAPE~]

Greetings! This is the New York Rare Bird Alert for Friday, January 15,
2016 at 6:00 pm.

The highlights of today’s tape are pelagic trip results, including NORTHERN FULMAR and COMMON MURRE, plus WESTERN GREBE, BLACK GUILLEMOT, THICK-BILLED MURRE, ROSS’S, BARNACLE and PINK-FOOTED GEESE, KING EIDER and BARROW’S GOLDENEYE, BLACK-HEADED GULL, SNOWY OWL, DICKCISSEL and LARK and CLAY-COLORED SPARROWS.

An inshore pelagic trip last Saturday aboard the Brooklyn VI from Sheepshead Bay, sponsored by See Life Paulagics, went out about 20 miles and encountered 13 NORTHERN FULMARS, a COMMON MURRE and 4 RAZORBILLS, 50 NORTHERN GANNETS, and 15 BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES. See Life Paulagics is also running an offshore pelagic January 23 on the same boat. For information call them at 215-234-6805.

The eastern Nassau – western Suffolk County area has recently been hosting a good variety of geese, but they have been moving about somewhat. A PINK-FOOTED GOOSE was roosting on Miller’s Pond in Smithtown and feeding on adjacent ballfields last weekend, but with the pond getting rather frozen it has apparently relocated elsewhere.

Two separate ROSS’S GEESE have also been present – one using Avon Lake and the adjoining creek and yards in Amityville last weekend was present at the same time that one was found Saturday in Massapequa at the Berner Middle School. The second bird was later seen on Unqua Lake and Elda Lake and by Wednesday was visiting the Sweet Hollow Middle School in Melville. Thursday found one in the early morning on Belmont Lake State Park and later off Pinelawn Road south of Route 495.

A BARNACLE GOOSE was similarly nomadic, first being noted on the North Babylon High School fields Sunday and then Monday seen at Elda Lake as viewed from Phelps Lane Park south of the high school. Today one was the Tung Ting Pond in Centerport before flying off.

At a couple of the above mentioned sites 1 or 2 GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE were also present, including 2 Thursday and today at Belmont Lake State Park, two off Pinelawn Road Thursday, and 1 at Babylon High School Sunday.

Further east a BARNACLE GOOSE was present Saturday with CANADAS along the south side of Oregon Road east of Alvah’s Lane in Cutchogue, and close to 200 AMERICAN PIPITS were in the same field.

GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE included one on Lake Ronkonkoma Saturday and one or more continuing in East Hampton either along Further Lane or at Hook Pond, the latter site still also hosting 2 TUNDRA SWANS.

Some CACKLING GEESE have also been noted, including the 2 remaining at Flushing Meadow Park well into this week.

Featured Ducks included the drake KING EIDER still along the south side of Montauk Point, where 1 or 2 HARLEQUIN DUCKS have also been, and the female BARROW’S GOLDENEYE seen again Saturday off northeastern Staten Island.

A EURASIAN WIGEON was still on the east pond at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge Tuesday, another at the Marine Park Salt Marsh Nature Center Thursday.

Alcids at Montauk last Saturday, besides a decent number of RAZORBILLS, included a fly-by BLACK GUILLEMOT at the Point and a fly-by THICK-BILLED MURRE at Culloden Point along the north shore west of the point. Some RED-NECKED GREBES are also in that area.

The WESTERN GREBE off Piermont Pier was enjoyed by many up to last Saturday but not thereafter.

A recent SNOWY OWL influx has included sightings in Brooklyn at Floyd Bennett Field today and Plumb Beach yesterday, Shinnecock Wednesday and Napeague Tuesday. Please give these Owls plenty of room while they roost during the day - do not push them around.

A sea watch off Robert Moses State Park Sunday reported a MANX and an unidentified large SHEARWATER plus 4 RAZORBILLS and 5 BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES.

The BLACK-HEADED GULL was still visiting Prospect Park Lake to Wednesday, and both ICELAND and GLAUCOUS GULLS have been present at the mouth of Montauk Harbor, with other ICELANDS especially elsewhere.

The LARK and CLAY-COLORED SPARROWS remain with the DARK-EYED JUNCO flock at Flushing Meadow Park, and the DICKCISSEL continues at the south end of Southards Pond in Babylon by the Park Avenue parking lot.

An immature RED-HEADED WOODPECKER remains at the Blydenburgh County Park parking lot off New Mill Road in Smithtown.

A YELLOW WARBLER continues at Floyd Bennett Field, and a LARK SPARROW continues at Croton Point Park, with another at Jones Beach West End Saturday.

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