New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, November 22, 2019:

-RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Nov. 22, 2019
* NYNY1911.22

- Birds Mentioned

ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER+
GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

Cackling Goose
Canada Goose
KING EIDER
Common Eider
Red-necked Grebe
BROWN PELICAN
Common Gallinule
MARBLED GODWIT
BLACK-HEADED GULL
ICELAND GULL
Lesser Black-backed Gull
WESTERN KINGBIRD
Eastern Phoebe
Blue-headed Vireo
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
LAPLAND LONGSPUR
Vesper Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT
Baltimore Oriole
Ovenbird
Orange-crowned Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Northern Parula
Wilson’s Warbler
Indigo Bunting

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

Compiler: Tom Burke
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, November 22, 2019 at 9:00 pm.

The highlights of today’s tape are GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW, ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER, WESTERN KINGBIRD, BROWN PELICAN, BLACK-HEADED GULL, KING EIDER, MARBLED GODWIT, ICELAND GULL, LAPLAND LONGSPUR, YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT and more.

Late last week a Sparrow photographed at the bird feeders maintained at Brookside County Park in Sayville was subsequently identified as a GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW, and since Sunday it has been seen consistently at that location, keeping company with a small flock of WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS. The address of Brookside County Park is 59 Brook Street, almost directly across from a large parking lot at Sayville High School. Proceed up the entry way to the feeders behind the park building, which has a viewing deck overlooking the feeders.

Regarding last Friday’s ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER at the Suffolk County Farm and Education Center off Yaphank Avenue, there was a single report from Saturday morning but no other known sightings despite the efforts of a number of birders.

Much more accommodating, a WESTERN KINGBIRD present at Jones Beach West End since November 2nd was still being seen yesterday, now very often present along the bike path that goes west from the parking lot at the now-under-construction Roosevelt Nature Center. The Kingbird has been reasonably faithful to that area this past week but could range further afield.

A BROWN PELICAN hanging around the inlet to Lake Montauk recently was noted yesterday again along the west side of the inlet. It does range into the harbor up to the Coast Guard Station and was apparently joined by a second immature BROWN PELICAN last Tuesday, perhaps the one visiting the Southampton commercial fishing docks last Sunday.

A BLACK-HEADED GULL was photographed Tuesday from the Frank Melville Memorial Park and Mill Pond in Setauket, this pond north of Old Field Road.

A decently plumaged drake KING EIDER was spotted Monday in a COMMON EIDER flock at Shinnecock Inlet, but there may still be issues reaching the inlet from the west side due to road washout.

CACKLING GEESE were reported from at least 6 different locations this week, so just a note that care should be taken in separating CACKLING from the smaller forms of CANADA GOOSE.

Single RED-NECKED GREBES were noted this week from Coney Island Creek in Brooklyn, off Mt. Loretto on Staten Island and from the Sands Point Preserve.

At Jones Beach a MARBLED GODWIT was still visiting the West End island off the Coast Guard Station Wednesday, and 4 LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS were counted at Field 6 last Sunday.

Two immature ICELAND GULLS appeared at Playland Lake in Rye last Monday, joining a gull feeding frenzy there, and one was still on the lake today.

Single COMMON GALLINULES were noted this week at Baisley Pond in Queens, at Hempstead Lake State Park and on Lotus Lake in Sayville.

A LAPLAND LONGSPUR flew by Fort Tilden Wednesday morning, and a YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT has been present at Marshlands Conservancy in Rye recently.

This week also produced a few reports of VESPER SPARROW and ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER as well as latish records of EASTERN PHOEBE, BLUE-HEADED VIREO, BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, BALTIMORE ORIOLE, INDIGO BUNTING and such WARBLERS as OVENBIRD, NASHVILLE, NORTHERN PARULA and a male WILSON’S in Prospect Park last Sunday.

To phone in reports please 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