New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, April 12, 2019:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Apr. 12, 2019
* NYNY1904.12

- Birds mentioned
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Forster's Tern
Blue-winged Teal
GREEN-WINGED TEAL
Redhead
Virginia Rail
AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER
SNOWY OWL
Boat-tailed Grackle
RED CROSSBILL
Pine Siskin
Chipping Sparrow
DICKCISSEL
YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER
Black-throated Green Warbler
Pine Warbler
Palm Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Louisiana Waterthrush
Marsh Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

- 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, April 12th 2019 at 9pm. The highlights of today's tape are Eurasian form of GREEN-WINGED TEAL, AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER, SNOWY OWL, RED CROSSBILL, DICKCISSEL, YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER and a few more spring arrivals.

With spring migration only slowly building in intensity a few surprises keep us going. The RED CROSSBILLS in the Manorville area have continued their nest building activities and thus will hopefully be around for a month or more with a successful outcome. Several CROSSBILLS and some PINE SISKINS as well have been frequenting the pitch pines along the Paumanok Path off the west side of Schultz Road about a mile and a half north of exit 69 on the Long Island Expressway. Paumanok Path starts at a small parking area and continues on the north side of Jones Pond with the birds occurring a short distance along the trail.

Last Saturday a YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER was also found singing in the same area of the CROSSBILLS but it proved to be much more elusive Sunday. The good news is that a male YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER, first seen last Saturday, is again on territory at the Bayard Cutting Arboretum in Great River usually near the parking area. In both cases, the CROSSBILLS and the WARBLER, as well as with any unusual nesters in our area, please be extra careful to not disrupt their breeding activities.

Certainly surprising was one birder's chance encounter with a singing DICKCISSEL along 108th Street in Forest Hills Queens last Saturday this area a little west of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park.

A winter plumaged AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER was photographed on Wednesday in Westchester County the bird briefly visiting the landfill at Croton Point Park. This early bird offset by a late SNOWY OWL still around the West Pond at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge last Sunday.

Also lingering, the Eurasian form of GREEN-WINGED TEAL was still on Santapogue Creek just south of Route 27A in West Babylon last Saturday. Some BLUE-WINGED TEAL now moving through included a pair seen last weekend on South Pond at Hempstead Lake State Park where some REDHEADS also remained with other REDHEADS also continuing on Jamaica Bay's East Pond.

As a migrant that can show up almost anywhere it seems a VIRGINIA RAIL was photographed last Monday evening as it stood on top of a car on 5th Avenue in Manhattan.

Single LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS were spotted Monday at Heckscher State Park and today on Sagg Pond in Bridgehampton.

A BOAT-TAILED GRACKLE at Pelham Bay Park last Saturday was unusual there.

Newer arrivals have included FORSTER'S TERN, MARSH WREN and more BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHERS and now widespread CHIPPING SPARROWS and among the warblers some more LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSHES and the first BLACK-THROATED GREEN and PRAIRIE WARBLERS along with the now much more plentiful PINE, PALM and YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS.

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