New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, January 26, 2018:

-RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Jan. 26, 2018
* NYNY1801.26

- Birds Mentioned

PINK-FOOTED GOOSE+
COMMON MURRE+
MEW GULL+
TOWNSEND’S SOLITAIRE+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE
ROSS’S GOOSE
Cackling Goose
Tundra Swan
EURASIAN WIGEON
KING EIDER
HARLEQUIN DUCK
Common Goldeneye
BARROW’S GOLDENEYE
Red-necked Grebe
EARED GREBE
BLACK-HEADED GULL
Iceland Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Glaucous Gull
American Bittern
Black Vulture
Rough-legged Hawk
Snowy Owl

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, January 26, 2018 at 8:00 pm.

Unfortunately, due to technical difficulties we have not been able to record the tape recently.

The highlights of today’s tape are MEW GULL, COMMON MURRE, TOWNSEND’S SOLITAIRE, PINK-FOOTED, ROSS’S and GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE, BARROW’S GOLDENEYE, KING EIDER, HARLEQUIN DUCK, EURASIAN WIGEON, EARED GREBE, BLACK-HEADED GULL and more.

Surprise of the week was the MEW GULL spending an hour mid-day last Saturday on Prospect Park Lake, this determined to be the western North American race brachyrhynchus but a different bird than the one spotted on the 16th at Veterans Memorial Pier. Neither has been seen after departing.

Another unexpected surprise was a COMMON MURRE photographed in the creek at Alley Pond Environmental Center last Monday, the delayed awareness of this sighting effectively preventing any successful follow-up.

The TOWNSEND’S SOLITAIRE was still present last Saturday at the Tiffany Creek Preserve in Oyster Bay. The Preserve parking area is off the west side of Sandy Hill Road, with the Solitaire field farther down on the east side of Sandy Hill just beyond a private road. Watch especially the junipers and bittersweet on the east side of the field for this elusive bird.

The PINK-FOOTED GOOSE out at Montauk was seen again Sunday and Monday on the pastures of Deep Hollow Ranch on the south side of Route 27 east of town. If not in the front fields, check those behind the barns. If not there, the PINK-FOOTED has also been seen at the Montauk Downs Golf Club.

Several ROSS’S GEESE seem to be in the area – one was seen at Belmont Lake State Park this morning and then later on St. Charles Cemetery in Farmingdale. Two ROSS’S visiting Tung Ting Pond in Centerport last Sunday, that day also finding two on Hook Pond in East Hampton. One noted Wednesday at Fort Totten in northeastern Queens Wednesday may have been the possible hybrid previously at Baisley Pond.

A GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE was still roosting on the Restoration Pond at Alley Pond Park in Queens last weekend, another was at Northport High School Tuesday, perhaps the one also visiting Tung Ting Pond in Centerport regularly, one appeared on Eastport Lake north of Montauk Highway today, and one was spotted on the East side of Doctors Path north of Riverhead last Sunday.

Scattered CACKLING GEESE include singles at Arthur J. Hendrickson Park in Valley Stream Wednesday and one at Belmont Lake State Park Thursday.

Two TUNDRA SWANS were seen again on Hook Pond Sunday, a usual location, but more unexpected is the one that has been on the East Pond at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge this week.

A drake BARROW’S GOLDENEYE apparently has returned to the waters off the Sands Point Preserve, seen there last Sunday, and a female BARROW’S was re-found Sunday in Fire Island inlet off the west end of the Cedar Beach road and was seen there as recently as yesterday in a COMMON GOLDENEYE flock.

The drake KING EIDER still at the Point Lookout jetties through Saturday may be the same one found off the jetty at Breezy Point on Sunday and still there Monday. Young male and female KINGS continue at Point Lookout, along with up to ten or more HARLEQUIN DUCKS.

Single drake EURASIAN WIGEON continue on the Mill Pond in Sayville and on Eastport Lake, and another was seen again at Crab Meadow Beach in Northport yesterday and today.

An EARED GREBE relocated at Oak Beach Sunday, as viewed near the docks off the west end of the road, was still there yesterday, and a RED-NECKED GREBE remains in Brooklyn in the waters near Floyd Bennett Field.

A BLACK-HEADED GULL was still at Five Islands Park in New Rochelle last weekend.

Single GLAUCOUS GULLS were noted at Orient Point Sunday, in Hendrickson Park Wednesday and off Terrapin Point at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge Thursday, while a few scattered ICELAND and LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS continue in the area.

Interesting were nine BLACK VULTURES over Central Park and four over the Marine Park Salt Marsh Nature Center, both sightings last Saturday.

Among other notable birds this week have been a few AMERICAN BITTERNS, ROUGH-LEGGED HAWKS and SNOWY OWLS.

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