New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, October 21, 2016:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Oct. 21, 2016
* NYNY1610.21

- Birds mentioned
EURASIAN WIGEON
Horned Grebe
American Bittern
CATTLE EGRET
Virginia Rail
MARBLED GODWIT
Red Knot
White-rumped Sandpiper
Pectoral Sandpiper
LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER
Caspian Tern
Royal Tern
Common Nighthawk
RED-HEADED WOODPECKER
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Black-and-white Warbler
Tennessee Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler
Nashville Warbler
American Redstart
Cape May Warbler
Northern Parula
Magnolia Warbler
Bay-breasted Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT
CLAY-COLORED SPARROW
LARK SPARROW
Nelson's Sparrow
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

Greetings. This is the New York Rare Bird Alert for Friday, October 21st 2016 at 7pm. The highlights of today's tape are EURASIAN WIGEON, CATTLE EGRET, MARBLED GODWIT, LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER, LARK SPARROW, CLAY-COLORED SPARROW, DICKCISSEL, YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT and RED-HEADED WOODPECKER.

In a week with interesting but not extraordinarily unusual birds the EURASIAN WIGEON, perhaps a returning bird, was spotted Saturday at the Salt Marsh Nature Center section of Marine Park in Brooklyn.

A CATTLE EGRET, now a rather unusual bird in our region, appeared Sunday near the Mount Loretto Unique Area on Staten Island this followed by perhaps the same bird visiting the Parade Ground with Canada Geese at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx on Thursday.

On Sunday 3 MARBLED GODWITS were spotted by a kayaker on Ruffle Bar out in Jamaica Bay these perhaps the same 3 out in the bay on September 17th. Other birds noted in Jamaica Bay included 10 HORNED GREBES, 26 RED KNOTS and a ROYAL TERN. CASPIAN TERN was still at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge Sunday. Today another MARBLED GODWIT appeared at Jones Beach West End on the spit off the Coast Guard Station lurking among the large flock of American Oystercatchers.

Other shorebirds included 2 LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS along Santapogue Creek off Venetian Boulevard in Lindenhurst Tuesday and WHITE-RUMPED and PECTORAL SANDPIPERS among the birds in the pool east of parking lot 2 at Jones Beach West End last Saturday. Also Saturday at Jones Beach a CLAY-COLORED SPARROW spent the day with other sparrows along the outer turnaround and a LARK SPARROW frequented the short grass around the temporary entrance to field 6 plus a DICKCISSEL was heard moving by West End early in the morning.

NELSON'S SPARROWS are also currently visiting appropriate salt marsh habitat now.

With a number of warblers still lingering in the region among the more unusual were a YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT at Ridgewood Reservoir in Queens Saturday and an ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER at Mashomack Preserve on Shelter Island Monday. Among the other lingering warblers have been one or more of OVENBIRD, NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH, BLACK-AND-WHITE, TENNESSEE, NASHVILLE, AMERICAN REDSTART, CAPE MAY, NORTHERN PARULA, MAGNOLIA, BAY-BREASTED, BLACKBURNIAN, YELLOW, CHESTNUT-SIDED, BLACK-THROATEDS BLUE and GREEN, PRAIRIE and WILSON'S.

With AMERICAN BITTERNS now showing up in coastal marshes including 2 at Tobay Sanctuary Sunday. More unexpected was one by the lake in Prospect Park Wednesday. Prospect also produced a VIRGINIA RAIL in that area late in the week and in Central Park an adult RED-HEADED WOODPECKER appeared in the Ramble Tuesday and was still present there today while an immature RED-HEADED WOODPECKER has also been residing less openly along the western side of the Great Lawn.

Late COMMON NIGHTHAWKS featured one in Northport and 2 in Setauket Monday.

Hawk variety should now be reaching its peak at local inland hawk lookouts with the added benefit of some nice Fall foliage. Worth a visit.

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