New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, March 15, 2019:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Mar. 15, 2019
* NYNY1903.15

- Birds mentioned
Red-necked Grebe
Razorbill
BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE
GLAUCOUS GULL
ICELAND GULL
Lesser Black-backed Gull
BLACK-HEADED GULL
TUNDRA SWAN
EURASIAN WIGEON
GREEN-WINGED TEAL
Blue-winged Teal
HARLEQUIN DUCK
GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE
Cackling Goose
American Woodcock
Piping Plover
Wilson's Snipe
Osprey
Eastern Phoebe
Rusty Blackbird
Boat-tailed Grackle
Evening Grosbeak
COMMON REDPOLL
Chipping Sparrow
Tree Swallow
Pine Warbler

- Transcript

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 nysarc44 (at)nybirds{dot}org.

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: Ben Cacace

BEGIN TAPE

Greetings. This is the New York Rare Bird Alert for Friday, March 15th 2019 at 9pm. The highlights of today's tape are TUNDRA SWAN, GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE, EURASIAN WIGEON, Eurasian form of GREEN-WINGED TEAL, HARLEQUIN DUCK, BLACK-HEADED GULL, GLAUCOUS GULL, ICELAND GULL, BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE, COMMON REDPOLL and spring arrivals.

Ah, the March doldrums when birders anticipation generally well exceeds realization. With waterfowl now strongly on the move some unusual species lingering locally have included the two TUNDRA SWANS out on Georgica Pond, the GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE still in the Rye area of lower Westchester at least to Tuesday and a CACKLING GOOSE still at Arthur J. Hendrickson Park in Valley Stream Tuesday. The Brooklyn EURASIAN WIGEON, a drake at the Marine Park Salt Marsh Nature Center and a female at Bush Terminal Piers Park were both still present today while the drake in Rye was still around Tuesday. A drake Eurasian form of GREEN-WINGED TEAL was seen again at Santapogue Creek in West Babylon from Saturday to Tuesday. A few HARLEQUIN DUCKS were still around the Jones Beach West End jetty last weekend with a pair also continuing around the Moriches Inlet east jetty at Smith Point County Park to Thursday.

Also noted at Jones Beach West End on Monday were an immature BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE and a RAZORBILL. An immature BLACK-HEADED GULL was spotted Sunday at Georgica Pond and a presumably over wintering adult in Oldfield was seen around the southwestern end of Conscience Bay on Wednesday. A GLAUCOUS GULL visited Randall's Island Wednesday and another was still at the Bellport Bay Yacht Club last Saturday. While an ICELAND GULL was seen again at the Austin Nichols House in Brooklyn Tuesday. At least 4 LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS were noted along Long Island's south shore last weekend including at Jones Beach West End, Heckscher State Park and Shinnecock Inlet. A RED-NECKED GREBE spotted on Patchogue Lake on Wednesday was still present today and 2 were off Pelham Bay Park yesterday.

A COMMON REDPOLL was found accompanying a flock of American Goldfinch in Brooklyn's Green-wood Cemetery on Wednesday and has continued there through today. A flock of 8 COMMON REDPOLLS appeared Wednesday near Cross River Reservoir in northern Westchester but the bulk of the REDPOLLS this winter have remained well north of our area.

The Riverside Park EVENING GROSBEAK continuing in northern Manhattan for an unexpectedly long time was last reported on Tuesday but don't despair as spring migration has begun. Arriving this week has been BLUE-WINGED TEAL, the first few PIPING PLOVERS, some WILSON'S SNIPE, a couple of OSPREYS and some of the earlier landbirds including EASTERN PHOEBE, TREE SWALLOW, CHIPPING SPARROW, BOAT-TAILED GRACKLE, RUSTY BLACKBIRD and PINE WARBLER with more on the way and AMERICAN WOODCOCK are now displaying nicely at many appropriate locations.

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

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

- End transcript