New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, November 17, 2017

-RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Nov. 17, 2017
* NYNY1711.17

- Birds Mentioned

BARNACLE GOOSE+
PACIFIC LOON+
WESTERN TANAGER+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE
Snow Goose
Cackling Goose
Tundra Swan
Eurasian Wigeon
Common Gallinule
HUDSONIAN GODWIT
Parasitic Jaeger
Razorbill
Black-legged Kittiwake
Bonaparte’s Gull
BLACK-HEADED GULL
Iceland Gull
Royal Tern
NORTHERN FULMAR
Great Shearwater
Northern Gannet
AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN
Rough-legged Hawk
GOLDEN EAGLE
SNOWY OWL
Red-headed Woodpecker
Lapland Longspur
Orange-crowned Warbler
Hooded Warbler
Wilson’s Warbler
CLAY-COLORED SPARROW
Vesper Sparrow

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, November 17, 2017 at 7:00 pm.

The highlights of today’s tape are WESTERN TANAGER, PACIFIC LOON, AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN, GOLDEN EAGLE, NORTHERN FULMAR, such waterfowl as BARNACLE and GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE, SNOWY OWL, BLACK-HEADED GULL, HUDSONIAN GODWIT, CLAY-COLORED SPARROW and more.

But firstly, we sadly note the loss of Eric Salzman, a long-time Brooklyn and East Quogue resident, who pass away suddenly last weekend. Eric was quite active in many birding societies and gladly shared his extensive knowledge with others. Our condolences to his family and friends – he certainly will be missed.

In a week with some very good finds, quite notable was the spotting of a female-plumaged WESTERN TANAGER at the Alley Pond Environmental Center last Sunday. This elusive bird was seen again for a few minutes mid-morning on Monday but has not been relocated since. The very productive area it was in, which also featured at least three ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS, is located on the east side of the creek, along trails to the south of Northern Boulevard, where numerous fruiting trees have been attracting a good variety of birds.

Three very interesting fly-by reports last weekend featured an immature GOLDEN EAGLE over Shrubland Road in South Hampton last Saturday morning, an AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN over Jones Beach West End also on Saturday, and a PACIFIC LOON moving east past Montauk Point Sunday morning. Montauk Point also produced two GREAT SHEARWATERS Saturday, one Sunday, and two RAZORBILLS Sunday.

A sea watch Thursday morning from Robert Moses State Park Field 2, in stormy conditions, recorded an unusual land-based record of NORTHERN FULMAR plus up to twelve RAZORBILLS, three PARASITIC JAEGERS, four BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES and two ROYAL TERNS, as well as a nice flight of NORTHERN GANNETS, sea ducks and BONAPARTE’S GULLS.

A SNOWY OWL flushed by fishermen from Bush Terminal Piers Park in Brooklyn Sunday signals that a few have already appeared in the area.

The adult BLACK-HEADED GULL was seen again Sunday and Monday around the Orchard Beach parking lot at Pelham Bay Park, and at nearby City Island an ICELAND GULL was spotted off Belden Point Saturday.

At least one HUDSONIAN GODWIT was still at Heckscher State Park today, this in the grassy area between Fields 6 and 7.

Among the arriving waterfowl, a BARNACLE GOOSE showed up on Old Town Pond Wednesday, this pond on the west side of Old Town Road in Southampton.

There were at least five reports of GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE this week, with one still off Oakleigh Avenue in Calverton at least to Monday along with up to eight CACKLING GEESE and a few SNOW GEESE, while other WHITE-FRONTEDS were one on Tung Ting Pond in Centerport Wednesday, one at Belmont Lake State Park Thursday, and singles at Northport High School in Northport and on Marratooka Lake off New Suffolk Avenue in Mattituck today. Other CACKLING GEESE included two at Hendrickson Park in Valley Stream Saturday.

A couple of apparent TUNDRA SWANS were noted flying over Moriches Bay in Center Moriches Sunday.

Single EURASIAN WIGEONS were on Eastport Lake north of Montauk Highway in Eastport Sunday and on Fresh Pond in Fort Salonga east of Fort Salonga Road Wednesday.

Other interesting reports featured a BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE off Fort Tilden Saturday, a ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK flying by the Fire Island hawk watch Saturday, a RED-HEADED WOODPECKER still in Brooklyn’s Greenwood Cemetery on Wednesday, and a COMMON GALLINULE on Prospect Park Lake through today.

Besides the several ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS noted locally this week, other late WARBLERS included a WILSON’S in Inwood Hill Park Wednesday and single HOODEDS in Prospect Park to Thursday and at Alley Pond Park today.

A LAPLAND LONGSPUR was at the swale at Jones Beach West End Thursday, a VESPER SPARROW was in Prospect Park last weekend, and a CLAY-COLORED SPARROW visited Zach’s Bay at Jones Beach Tuesday.

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