New York City Rare Bird Alert

Below is the New York City Rare Bird Alert for the week ending Friday, February 28, 2020:

- RBA
* New York
* New York City, Long Island, Westchester County
* Feb. 28, 2020
* NYNY2002.28


- Birds mentioned
THICK-BILLED MURRE+
BARNACLE GOOSE+
PAINTED BUNTING+
TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE+
(+ Details requested by NYSARC)

Red-necked Grebe
Common Gallinule
BLACK GUILLEMOT
Razorbill
Iceland Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
BLACK-HEADED GULL
EURASIAN WIGEON
BARROW'S GOLDENEYE
HARLEQUIN DUCK
KING EIDER
GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE
Cackling Goose
American Bittern
Rough-legged Hawk
RED-HEADED WOODPECKER
Eastern Phoebe
Orange-crowned Warbler
VARIED THRUSH

- 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

Compiler: Tom Burke
Coverage: New York City, Long Island, Westchester County

Transcriber: Ben Cacace

BEGIN TAPE

Greetings. This is the New York Rare Bird Alert for Friday, February 28th 2020 at 9pm. The highlights of today's tape are VARIED THRUSH, PAINTED BUNTING, TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE, BLACK GUILLEMOT, THICK-BILLED MURRE, BARNACLE GOOSE, GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE, EURASIAN WIGEON, BARROW'S GOLDENEYE, KING EIDER, HARLEQUIN DUCK, BLACK-HEADED GULL, RED-HEADED WOODPECKER and more.

Of the standout passerines present locally the VARIED THRUSH was reported as recently as yesterday in Brooklyn's Prospect Park occurring in the Nethermead often on the hillsides near the arches. The PAINTED BUNTING at Brooklyn Bridge Park was last Sunday seen ranging from Pier 5 over to Pier 3 and the Greenway Terrace and later back to Pier 5. One assumes the possibility of two different individuals has been addressed.

Out in the East Hampton area the TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE was still present in Northwest Harbor along Three Mile Harbor Drive near number 56 and the small park designated by a sign bearing the initials SLPOA. This bird does call occasionally.

Out at Montauk Point last Monday a birder watching the THICK-BILLED MURRE on the ocean by the lighthouse was also treated to a BLACK GUILLEMOT landing off the restaurant and remaining visible for a short while. Neither the MURRE nor the GUILLEMOT have been reported since Monday but could still be around. A RED-NECKED GREBE was off the point Saturday. The western Long Island BARNACLE GOOSE was seen on Belmont Lake State Park last Saturday afternoon and again on Sunday therefore continuing in that area. The GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE in the Rye area was still present today on the Rye Brook Pond off Bowman Avenue. A few CACKLING GEESE include one found Sunday at Frank Melville Memorial Park and Mill Pond in Setauket north of Old Field Road.

A drake EURASIAN WIGEON was seen Sunday at West Neck Beach in Lloyd Harbor. A drake BARROW'S GOLDENEYE was still around the south end of Lake Montauk last Sunday seen from West Lake Drive but also try South Lake Drive to locate the GOLDENEYE flock. Also on Montauk a drake KING EIDER was seen again from Culloden Point last Sunday while single females, also continuing birds, were present with Common Eiders Saturday at Shinnecock Inlet and to Monday at Orient Point where 4 HARLEQUIN DUCKS also remain. The immature male HARLEQUIN DUCK was still present today in Brooklyn's Sheepshead Bay where both the adult BLACK-HEADED GULL and an immature ICELAND GULL visited last Sunday. LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS were noted in Brooklyn during the week at Coney Island Beach and Floyd Bennett Field and a few RAZORBILLS remain along the shore including 2 Monday well inside Jones Inlet at the fishing piers and another Sunday at Canarsie Pier.

AMERICAN BITTERNS continue along Dune Road and a COMMON GALLINULE was still on the Mill Pond in Bellmore Wednesday. A ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK remained in the area of Cedar Beach along Ocean Parkway through last weekend and another was spotted at Orient Point Sunday. A RED-HEADED WOODPECKER has continued into this week at the north end of Central Park while EASTERN PHOEBES were noted at at least 6 different locations. An ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER was visiting the suet feeder at the South Fork Natural History Museum in Bridgehampton at least to Wednesday.

To phone in reports 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