New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, May 4, 2018:

-RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* May 4, 2018
* NYNY1805.04

- Birds Mentioned

WESTERN TANAGER+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

Harlequin Duck
CHUCK-WILL’S WIDOW
Sora
Cattle Egret
Semipalmated Plover
Iceland Gull
Least Tern
Caspian Tern
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Black-billed Cuckoo
Snowy Owl
RED-HEADED WOODPECKER
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Least Flycatcher
Great Crested Flycatcher
White-eyed Vireo
Cliff Swallow
Worm-eating Warbler
PROTHONOTARY WARBLER
Tennessee Warbler
ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER
Nashville Warbler
KENTUCKY WARBLER
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
American Redstart
Cape May Warbler
CERULEAN WARBLER
Magnolia Warbler
Bay-breasted Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER
Prairie Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Canada Warbler
Wilson’s Warbler
YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT
CLAY-COLORED SPARROW
Grasshopper Sparrow
Lincoln’s Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
SUMMER TANAGER
BLUE GROSBEAK
Bobolink

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, May 4, 2018 at 9:00 pm.

The highlights of today’s tape are CHUCK-WILL’S-WIDOW, WESTERN TANAGER, a good selection of WARBLERS including PROTHONOTARY, YELLOW-THROATED, KENTUCKY, CERULEAN, ORANGE-CROWNED, YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT, BLUE GROSBEAK, SUMMER TANAGER, CLAY-COLORED SPARROW, RED-HEADED WOODPECKER and much more

Our continuing unusual series of weather events has not had a really negative impact on spring migration, as a good variety of northbound birds seems to be arriving relatively on time.

A standout this week was the CHUCK-WILL’S-WIDOW found in Central Park’s ramble today, always a treat to get in the city parks.

Also very notable was a male WESTERN TANAGER visiting a suet feeder in Brookhaven to Wednesday.

The WARBLER species total has exceeded thirty during the last couple of days, with many arrivals, though not necessarily in large numbers. Highlights among them include a couple of PROTHONOTARY WARBLERS in Central Park today, with one in the Ramble, another at the north end. Prospect Park produced a PROTHONOTARY at the Peninsula Thursday, following one from Tuesday, a male PROTHONOTARY found at Hempstead Lake State Park last Saturday was still present Thursday, and another was reported from Frank Melville Park in Setauket last Saturday.

A decent number of YELLOW-THROATED WARBLERS included one lingering at Hempstead Lake State Park to Tuesday, one or two in Central Park Wednesday and Thursday, and another at Fuchs Pond Preserve in Fort Salonga Tuesday.

Prospect Park produced a KENTUCKY WARBLER last Saturday, with another at Central Park’s north end yesterday and today. A YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT also appeared in Central Park today.

Other more unusual warblers included CERULEAN in Central Park Wednesday and in Prospect Park today, and single ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS in Brooklyn’s Greenwood Cemetery last Saturday, in Queens’s Crocheron Park Sunday, another still at Southard’s Pond Park in Babylon Sunday, and one in Central Park today.

Also included in the list of this week’s WARBLERS were WORM-EATING, TENNESSEE, NASHVILLE, COMMON YELLOWTHROAT, HOODED, AMERICAN REDSTART, CAPE MAY, MAGNOLIA, BAY-BREASTED, BLACKBURNIAN, CHESTNUT-SIDED, BLACKPOLL, BLACK-THROATED BLUE, BLACK-THROATED GREEN, PRAIRIE, CANADA and WILSON’S.

Recent BLUE GROSBEAKS this week were noted at Robert Moses State Park Wednesday and Thursday, at Crocheron Park today, and at Southaven County Park to today.

One or more SUMMER TANAGERS have been in Central Park mid-week and a nice find in Central was a SORA at the north end of the lake today.

A RED-HEADED WOODPECKER was also in Central Park today, following a couple out at Jones Beach West End, with one still there today.

A CLAY-COLORED SPARROW was found at Robert Moses State Park Thursday, and a GRASSHOPPER SPARROW was reported from Alley Pond Park Sunday.

For winter birds, a drake HARLEQUIN DUCK was still at Orient Point Thursday, a SNOWY OWL visited Great Gull Island last weekend, and an ICELAND GULL was still at Staten Island Saturday.

Two CATTLE EGRETS were at Midland Beach on Staten Island Thursday, and two CASPIAN TERNS continued at Southaven County Park to last Sunday.

Among the other arrivals this week have been both BLACK-BILLED and YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOOS, SEMIPALMATED PLOVER, LEAST TERN, EASTERN WOOD-PEWEE, GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER, LEAST FLYCATCHER, WHITE-EYED VIREO, CLIFF SWALLOW, BOBOLINK, and WHITE-CROWNED and LINCOLN’S SPARROWS.

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