New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, January 22, 2016:

-RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Jan. 22, 2016
* NYNY1601.22

- Birds Mentioned

PINK-FOOTED GOOSE+
BARNACLE GOOSE+
CALIFORNIA GULL+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

Greater White-fronted Goose
ROSS’S GOOSE
Cackling Goose
Canada Goose
Tundra Swan
Eurasian Wigeon
Harlequin Duck
Red-necked Grebe
AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN
Long-billed Dowitcher
BLACK-HEADED GULL
Iceland Gull
Glaucous Gull
SNOWY OWL
Red-headed Woodpecker
Eastern Phoebe
House Wren
Orange-crowned Warbler
Wilson’s Warbler
CLAY-COLORED SPARROW
LARK SPARROW
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 22, 2016 at 6:00 pm.

The highlights of today’s tape are a possible CALIFORNIA GULL, BARNACLE, ROSS’S and PINK-FOOTED GEESE, AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN, SNOWY OWL, BLACK-HEADED GULL, LARK and CLAY-COLORED SPARROWS and more.

A bird looking likely for an advanced first winter CALIFORNIA GULL was spotted in Brooklyn Tuesday along Gravesend Bay, seen by the middle parking lot between the Verrazano Narrows Bridge and the Kohl’s shopping center, these lots only accessible from the Belt Parkway going East. Birders searching for the Gull Wednesday and Thursday were not able to relocate it, but if refound, more photos including spread wing and leg shots would be desirable to assist in confirmation of the identification.

The good variety of Geese locally does continue, though they do continue to move around. Belmont Lake State Park in the early morning has with some consistency been producing one of the ROSS’S GEESE, 2 GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE and a CACKLING GOOSE among the variety of waterfowl roosting there overnight.

A BARNACLE GOOSE has recently been lingering in Centerport, often seen on small Tung Ting Pond, especially in the evening; this pond is off Route 25A just west of the Chalet Motel and the Centerport Mill Pond, where a EURASIAN WIGEON has been hanging out. This BARNACLE was also seen Sunday at the Elementary School on Pulaski Road.

A PINK-FOOTED GOOSE was spotted north of Riverhead last Sunday, located on the south side of Reeves Avenue between Roanoke Avenue and Doctor’s Path.

Another GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE has been visiting Playland Lake in Rye in the mornings recently, and CACKLING GEESE can occasionally be found carefully scanning the Canada flocks, but there are a lot of small CANADA GEESE out there too.

Two TUNDRA SWANS were still on Hook Pond in East Hampton yesterday, and recently EURASIAN WIGEON have been seen Wednesday at the Marine Park Salt Marsh Nature Center and Tuesday off Floyd Bennett Field, both in Brooklyn, and on the East Pond at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge Monday.

A drake HARLEQUIN DUCK was at the Point Lookout jetties Sunday, and a female was found off Fort Wadsworth on Staten Island Monday.

Interesting were 2 AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS reported flying west over the ocean off Jones Beach West End Saturday morning.

During the week SNOWY OWLS were seen at Jones Beach and Shinnecock – if lucky enough to encounter one, please refrain from pushing it around.

The immature BLACK-HEADED GULL was still being seen on Prospect Park Lake Tuesday, and another was in New York Harbor Sunday.

A GLAUCOUS GULL was at Gravesend Bay in Brooklyn Thursday, another has been visiting Center Island Town Park east of Bayville, this one best on a lower tide, and one was still being seen recently around the inlet to Lake Montauk; an ICELAND GULL or two also continue there, and an ICELAND visited Central Park Reservoir Saturday to Monday, with another at Brooklyn Bridge Park Wednesday and Thursday.

Two RED-NECKED GREBES were off Floyd Bennett Field Saturday.

In Flushing Meadows Park the CLAY-COLORED SPARROW was still present Sunday along with the LARK SPARROW, and single LARK SPARROWS were also by the outer turnaround at Jones Beach West End to Thursday and at Croton Point Park in Westchester to Thursday.

A DICKCISSEL continues at Southard’s Pond in Babylon by the parking lot at the south end off Park Avenue.

At least 6 LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS were still at Santapogue Creek in Lindenhurst Tuesday.

RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS remain at Willowbrook Park on Staten Island and at Blydenburgh County Park in Smithtown.

A few lingering ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS are not as unusual as the WILSON’S WARBLER still surviving at the Bronx Zoo Wednesday. An EASTERN PHOEBE was still at Jones Beach West End Monday, a HOUSE WREN at Massapequa Preserve today.

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