New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, March 24, 2017:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Mar. 24, 2017
* NYNY1703.24

- Birds mentioned
TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

EURASIAN WIGEON
EARED GREBE
NORTHERN GOSHAWK
ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK
American Woodcock
BLACK-HEADED GULL
ICELAND GULL
GLAUCOUS GULL
Red-headed Woodpecker
Eastern Phoebe
Pine Warbler
VESPER SPARROW
DICKCISSEL
RED CROSSBILL

- 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, March 24th 2017 at 7pm. The highlights of today's tape are TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE, EARED GREBE, BLACK-HEADED GULL, GLAUCOUS GULL, ICELAND GULL, EURASIAN WIGEON, NORTHERN GOSHAWK, ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK, VESPER SPARROW, DICKCISSEL and RED CROSSBILL.

Hopefully everyone who wants to has by now ventured out to Southold to see the TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE still frequenting the area around blue house #1625 North Sea Drive up to Thursday. But for how much longer?

The EARED GREBE was still present Tuesday in Fire Island inlet off the western end of Oak Beach Road.

An adult BLACK-HEADED GULL, presumably wintering in Brooklyn, was seen both at Veteran's Memorial Pier and nearby around the water treatment facility next to Owl's Head Park last weekend and up to Wednesday. Also in the city a GLAUCOUS GULL again appeared on Central Park's reservoir Sunday and an ICELAND GULL was still visiting Prospect Park lake last Saturday with another ICELAND at the Brooklyn Army Terminal Pier 4 today.

Immature NORTHERN GOSHAWKS continue to linger both in Prospect Park Brooklyn and at Massapequa Preserve. The bird in Prospect Park is frequently encountered in the area of the feeders while the Massapequa bird seems to wander around a larger more unpredictable area.

With very few ROUGH-LEGGED HAWKS wintering in our area this year notable have been two seen recently at the Calverton Grasslands at the former Grumman airport at least to Wednesday.

Waterfowl variety has been diminishing lately but still around have been the drake EURASIAN WIGEON continuing at Marine Park Salt Marsh Nature Center in Brooklyn at least to Sunday and another still at Fresh Pond at Fort Salonga Saturday.

Among the few RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS now in our region were 2 seen recently in the Dix Hills area as well as lingering individuals at Kissena Park Queens Monday and Caumsett State Park Tuesday and in Central Park where one continues just west of East 68th Street. Two have also been at Mashomack Preserve on Shelter Island recently.

A DICKCISSEL Tuesday at Biltmore Shores on Staten Island was a nice find and does point out that passerines are now moving about and into our area. Besides a further influx of EASTERN PHOEBES 2 PINE WARBLERS were noted in Central Park last Sunday and 3 VESPER SPARROWS were spotted Thursday in Calverton.

Various other species are also now on the move including a very interesting occurrence today of 2 RED CROSSBILLS at the Edgewood Oakbrush Plains Preserve in Deer Park.

This is also now a good time to enjoy the evening antics of AMERICAN WOODCOCKS displaying both at dusk and also at dawn in decent numbers at appropriate open areas in our region. Hopefully most survived the recent snow and subsequent freeze over and can now resume their migration.

To phone in reports, days except Sunday, 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