New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, January 25, 2019:

-RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Jan. 25, 2019
* NYNY1901.25

- Birds Mentioned

BARNACLE GOOSE+
COMMON MURRE+
THICK-BILLED MURRE+
VARIED THRUSH+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE
Canada Goose
TUNDRA SWAN
EURASIAN WIGEON
GREEN-WINGED TEAL (Eurasian form)
HARLEQUIN DUCK
BARROW’S GOLDENEYE
Red-necked Grebe
American Bittern
Rough-legged Hawk
American Oystercatcher
Razorbill
BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE
BLACK-HEADED GULL
Laughing Gull
ICELAND GULL
Lesser Black-backed Gull
GLAUCOUS GULL
Wood Thrush
Ovenbird
Orange-crowned Warbler
YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT
COMMON REDPOLL
Pine Siskin
EVENING GROSBEAK

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 25, 2019 at 9:00 pm.

The highlights of today’s tape are VARIED THRUSH, BARNACLE and GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE, TUNDRA SWAN, BARROW’S GOLDENEYE, HARLEQUIN DUCK, EURASIAN WIGEON, and Eurasian form of GREEN-WINGED TEAL, THICK-BILLED and COMMON MURRES, BLACK-HEADED, GLAUCOUS and ICELAND GULLS, BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE, EVENING GROSBEAK, COMMON REDPOLL and YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT.

An elusive VARIED THRUSH on Staten Island was seen again this week both last Saturday and again on Monday in Clove Lakes Park; the bird has been spotted near Brooks Pond in the northern portion of the park or along the eastern edge of the park and usually requires patience. Also in Clove Lakes Park this week were an AMERICAN BITTERN and a lingering YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT.

A BARNACLE GOOSE continues visiting the sod fields north of Riverhead but, especially with hunters present, has been moving around with the CANADA flocks quite a bit – locations this week have included fields off Osborn Avenue, Hulse Landing Road and Reeves Avenue as well as at the more regular fields east of Doctors Path and along Route 105 south of Sound Avenue. One or two GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE also continue with the large flocks of geese.

Another GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE was present around Roslyn Pond last weekend, and one visiting southern Westchester County was back on Playland Lake in Rye today.

Two TUNDRA SWANS were on Hook Pond in East Hampton Monday, this a regular site for them.

A drake BARROW’S GOLDENEYE was spotted again off Crab Meadow Beach Wednesday, and HARLEQUIN DUCK was still in Shinnecock Inlet last Saturday.

A drake EURASIAN WIGEON was still on Avon Lake in Amityville early in the week, and on Wednesday a drake Eurasian form of GREEN-WINGED TEAL was spotted on Santapogue Creek in West Babylon.

Local numbers of RAZORBILLS dropped off this week, with about 240 counted off Montauk Point Wednesday, but as of last Saturday at least, both single THICK-BILLED and COMMON MURRES were joining a few RAZORBILLS around Shinnecock Inlet. Two more THICK-BILLED MURRES were also reported around Jones Inlet last Saturday.

In Brooklyn last weekend an adult BLACK-HEADED GULL was spotted both at Sheepshead Bay and at Coney Island Creek Park, while the Jones Beach West End bird was also noted Saturday.

A GLAUCOUS GULL was at the Bellport Bay Yacht Club Monday, and ICELAND GULLS were noted at Coney Island Creek Sunday, Gravesend Bay Monday and at Crab Meadow Beach Wednesday.

Three BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES were off Montauk Point Wednesday, and a few LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS included two in Bellport Bay Monday, while a very unexpected LAUGHING GULL visited Croton Point Park in Westchester today.

A RED-NECKED GREBE was off Floyd Bennett Field at least to Wednesday, and a lingering AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER was noted there on Monday.

A ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK appeared at the Grumman grasslands in Calverton Tuesday.

Currently sparse numbers of winter Finches do include the male EVENING GROSBEAK continuing in Manhattan’s Riverside Park, usually around 117 Street or above, and a COMMON REDPOLL found on Randall’s Island last Sunday. A few more REDPOLLS and a small number of PINE SISKINS have also been visiting the Avalon Gardens and East Farm Preserve in Stony Brook the last few days, often near the pond.

A WOOD THRUSH was still at the Quogue Wildlife Refuge last Saturday, and an OVENBIRD was noted in Central Park Wednesday.

Among a few ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS were singles at the Marine Park Salt Marsh Nature Center Saturday and Calvert Vaux Park Wednesday, these both in Brooklyn.

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