As Gabriel Willow and Tom Fiore have already pointed out, given the proximity of the New York Botanical Garden to the Bronx Zoo where a female Rose-breasted Grosbeak was reported on December 28 and February 17, this is far more likely to be that same individual than an early arrival from the species’ Neotropical wintering area. Though extremely rare in winter locally, the species is not unprecedented at that season. I found an immature male Rose-breasted in the southern part of the Botanical Garden, across the road from the Bronx Zoo on the CBC 32 years ago on December 26, 1982. In the species account in Bull’s Birds of New York State (1998), Bob McKinney reports : “… there are many CBC reports and many other records of individuals persisting for several weeks or longer with food available at feeders.” In his earlier Birds of New York State (1974), John Bull says the species has been recorded during the winter months, but that he wondered about the possibility of confusion with Black-headed Grosbeak. However, he does cite two mid-winter undoubted occurrences: 1) a bird at a feeder in Dunkirk, December 1965 to late January 1966, seen by many, and 2) a male filmed at a feeder in Poughkeepsie December 25, 1966 to January 12, 1967. In some neighboring states, Dick Veit and Wayne Peterson in Birds of Massachusetts (1993) record a handful of winter records and a few early March records [also likely to be over-wintering birds]; and Joan Walsh, et al. in Birds of New Jersey (1999) after reporting four CBC records state: “There are also a few mid-winter reports, mainly of birds appearing at feeders.”
While the above records show that the species has overwintered in the Northeast on rare occasions, it is truly remarkable that this individual apparently managed the feat in the at times brutally cold and snowy winter we have just gone through! Joe DiCostanzo <http://www.greatgullisland.org/> www.greatgullisland.org <http://www.inwoodbirder.blogspot.com> www.inwoodbirder.blogspot.com From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Sharron Crocker Sent: Friday, March 13, 2015 6:37 PM To: Birds - [email protected] Subject: [nysbirds-l] Female Rose Breasted Grosbeak I've been told that this is an early sighting. New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, NY, Thursday 3/12/15 around 2:00 at the swamp (Mitsubishi Wetlands) ... Sharron Crocker NYC -- Sharron Lee Crocker Visit my website at: UntamedNewYork.com -- NYSbirds-L List Info: <http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME> Welcome and Basics <http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES> Rules and Information <http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm> Subscribe, Configuration and Leave Archives: The Mail Archive <http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html> <http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L> Surfbirds BirdingOnThe.Net <http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html> Please submit your observations to <http://ebird.org/content/ebird/> eBird! -- -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
