New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, August 2, 2019:

-RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Aug. 2, 2019
* NYNY1908.02

- Birds Mentioned

BROWN BOOBY+
BRIDLED TERN+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

BROWN PELICAN
Tricolored Heron
WHIMBREL
HUDSONIAN GODWIT
MARBLED GODWIT
Pectoral Sandpiper
Short-billed Dowitcher
RED-NECKED PHALAROPE
CASPIAN TERN
BLACK TERN
Royal Tern
Purple Martin
Bank Swallow
Cerulean Warbler
DICKCISSEL
Purple Finch

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, August 2, 2019 at 8:00 pm.

The highlights of today’s tape are BROWN BOOBY, BROWN PELICAN, a BRIDLED TERN update, MARBLED and HUDSONIAN GODWITS, WHIMBREL, RED-NECKED PHALAROPE, BLACK and CASPIAN TERNS, DICKCISSEL and more.

An immature BROWN BOOBY was spotted last Saturday during a whale watching cruise as the boat was out between Breezy Point and Sandy Hook, NJ; on Sunday mid-day what may have been the same bird was photographed as it sat on the beach at Heckscher State Park’s Field 7, this followed by a report Tuesday off Fire Island. There have been no reports since, but this is one to be on the lookout for.

Early in the week there were also a few BROWN PELICANS noted along the Atlantic coastline, including Sunday sightings of two off mid-Fire Island and another early off Gilgo’s Overloook Beach, a report from Cupsogue County Park in Westhampton Dunes Monday, and on Tuesday evening one off Miller Field on Staten Island. Watch for PELICANS around the inlets and bays as well as offshore.

As a note, the adult BRIDLED TERN was last seen by tern personnel on Great Gull Island back on Thursday August 25th.

As shorebird season continues to build, most welcome were three MARBLED GODWITS spotted at Cupsogue County Park on Thursday, these hopefully to continue there for a while, while out on Fire Island an adult HUDSONIAN GODWIT found at the Fire Island Wilderness on Wednesday was still present today.

A RED-NECKED PHALAROPE was spotted swimming just beyond the surf at Smith Point County Park in Shirley early this afternoon.

A reasonable number of WHIMBRELS recently have included three at Breezy Point Wednesday and, on Thursday, two at Robert Moses State Park and singles at Plumb Beach and Coney Island Creek in Brooklyn, as well as at Jacob Riis Park today.

Recently at Cupsogue County Park, last Saturday produced a PECTORAL SANDPIPER, two *hendersoni *SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHERS and a BLACK TERN, as well as a good assortment of expected shorebirds, and two CASPIAN TERNS appeared there on Tuesday. ROYAL TERNS are also gathering at various sites along the coast.

Two TRICOLORED HERONS were still around the Captree Island marsh last Saturday.

Only a modest number of landbirds have been on the move recently, but a noteworthy one was a DICKCISSEL flying by Robert Moses State Park early Tuesday morning.

Also moving have been family groups of PURPLE MARTINS and some BANK SWALLOWS; but unexpected were a PURPLE FINCH at Cupsogue Saturday and a female CERULEAN WARBLER in Manhattan’s Riverside Park, also last Saturday. More passerines will be coming soon.

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