New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, October 27, 2017:

-RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Oct. 27, 2017
* NYNY1710.27

- Birds Mentioned

BROWN BOOBY+

(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

EURASIAN WIGEON
American Bittern
AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER
White-rumped Sandpiper
Pectoral Sandpiper
Long-billed Dowitcher
Parasitic Jaeger
LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL
Royal Tern
RED-HEADED WOODPECKER
American Pipit
Orange-crowned Warbler
Hooded Warbler
Cape May Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT
CLAY-COLORED SPARROW
Vesper Sparrow
Nelson’s Sparrow
BLUE GROSBEAK
DICKCISSEL
Eastern Meadowlark
Rusty Blackbird

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

Compilers: Tom Burke and 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, October 27, 2017 at 8:00 pm.

The highlights of today’s tape are BROWN BOOBY, EURASIAN WIGEON, AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER, LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL numbers, RED-HEADED WOODPECKER, YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT, CLAY-COLORED SPARROW, DICKCISSEL and BLUE GROSBEAK.

In a week characterized by a variety of decent later fall migrants, our one true rarity remained the BROWN BOOBY on Lake Montauk, but based on reports we are not aware that it remained beyond Tuesday, the last day it was noted at its usual location south of the Star Island entrance road off West Lake Drive. If out in that area, it might still be worth scanning from the above site or from South Lake Drive to see if the BOOBY might continue there.

A EURASIAN WIGEON was present on Swan Lake on the east side of Patchogue Sunday to Tuesday, and 2 were noted on the East Pond at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge this week.

Shorebirds were highlighted by an AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER at Jones Beach West End off the Coast Guard Station through Wednesday, while LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER reports include 4 at Santapogue Creek off Venetian Boulevard in West Bayshore Monday and 2 at Heckscher State Park Thursday. One WHITE-RUMPED and 14 PECTORAL SANDPIPERS were at Jamaica Bay Sunday.

Two PARASITIC JAEGERS were present off Montauk Point Saturday, followed by 1 off Coney Island Beach in Brooklyn Tuesday.

LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL numbers have been increasing lately, most notably exemplified by the 89 counted Wednesday on a coastal survey from Floyd Bennett Field east to Robert Moses State Park, with 47 of these at Jones Beach West End, especially in parking field 2.

Lingering ROYAL TERNS include Tuesday sightings of 8 at Coney Island Pier and 3 at Floyd Bennett Field.

An AMERICAN BITTERN was near Triton Lane north of Dune Road Sunday, with another at the Marine Park Salt Marsh Nature Center today.

Single RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS were noted last Saturday on Governor’s Island and at Montauk Point.

Among the later WARBLERS, ORANGE-CROWNEDS were noted in Central Park during the week and in Kissena Park in Queens last Saturday, single HOODEDS appeared in Gardiner’s Park Thursday and Central Park Friday, and other species included CAPE MAY and MAGNOLIA. And a highlight was the YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT present in Fort Tryon Park in northern Manhattan last Friday to Sunday, with another at Croton Point Park in Westchester County Wednesday.

Increasing SPARROW numbers featured single CLAY-COLORED SPARROWS at Jones Beach West End Saturday and Sunday and at Robert Moses State Park last Saturday, while decent numbers of VESPER SPARROWS included a peak of 4 on Governor’s Island last Sunday, with fewer other days, and singles at Floyd Bennett Field from Saturday on, at Kissena Park and Bush Terminal Piers Park last Saturday, and also at other locations.

DICKCISSELS this week included individuals at Calvert Vaux Park in Brooklyn and Robert Moses State Park last Saturday and 1 at Jones Beach West End from Wednesday on.

A BLUE GROSBEAK was found in Scarsdale Wednesday.

Among the other notable seasonal migrants have been some AMERICAN PIPITS and EASTERN MEADOWLARKS, the first arriving RUSTY BLACKBIRDS, and a variety of races of NELSON’S SPARROWS in our coastal salt marshes.

Of extralimital note, a SAY’S PHOEBE was in Orange County last Saturday, and a COMMON GREENSHANK has been present recently to this morning at Brigantine, the Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge in New Jersey.

To phone in reports, on Long Island call Tony Lauro at (631) 734 4126 or call Tom Burke at (914) 967-4922 and leave a message.

This service is sponsored by the Linnaean Society of New York and the National Audubon Society. Thank you for calling.

- End transcript