Rich, Sean, and all, Coverage of the spectacle of coastal migration has never been better! Sean, along with his fellow Brooklyn migration-watchers Doug Gochfeld and Shane Blodgett, has recently helped to pioneer new vantages, such as Coney Island Creek Park, as well as (somewhat grudgingly) achieving excellent coverage of the much better known Queens outer beach (e.g., Fort Tilden), whereas increasing numbers of Nassau and western Suffolk birders have taken an interest in morning flight dynamics to the east, at Jones Beach, Robert Moses SP, etc.
I was at RMSP for two hours this morning, and it was, at last, a real fall morning, with northwest winds. The winds were light, however, which means that few birds were drifted far out over the ocean, but the concentrating effect of even light northwest winds in spectacular--especially for species that habitually take a coastal route (e.g., Tree Swallows, Cedar Waxwings, Myrtle Warblers, blackbirds, and finches). My two-hour survey tallied 4009 Tree Swallows, 607 Cedar Waxwings, 5823 Myrtle Warblers, and my first coastal Rusty Blackbird, Purple Finch, and Pine Siskins of the fall. Three widely spaced Dickcissels were perhaps notable, but not really surprising in this context, as years of standing around on the barrier beach has proved. Doug and Shane had a slightly different blend at Coney Island Creek Park, illustrative of the geographical nuances of the two sites. The outer barrier is perhaps the best place to observe spectacular fights on strong northwest winds (the reorientation flights of even nocturnal migrant species there can last well into the afternoon there), but Coney Island Creek Park is perfectly situated to host diverse mixes of nocturnal- and diurnal-migrant species, including some that actively avoid the outer beach. This fall has so far been the very worst I can ever remember for coastal flights, owing to the stubborn absence of northwest winds, so tday was very refreshing! Full eBird checklist: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S25426976 Shai Mitra Bay Shore ________________________________________ From: [email protected] [[email protected]] on behalf of Richard Guthrie [[email protected]] Sent: Thursday, October 15, 2015 4:06 PM To: Sean Sime Cc: nys birds Subject: Re: [nysbirds-l] Kings County this morning: Visible Migration Do you go down to the outer beaches now and then to watch the overshoot migrants fly in from the ocean at first light as well? I've read about that but never witnessed it. I understand that the gulls are there waiting for the weakened ones - and of course the feral cats, to get the ones who make it to the vegetation. Rich Guthrie New Baltimore The Greene County, New York On Thu, Oct 15, 2015 at 2:28 PM, Sean Sime <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: I wasn't able to be out at first light to see the full spectacle of morning flight along the coast, but even at 8:45 there were still really good numbers of Yellow-rumped Warblers, Ruby-crowned Kinglets and Eastern Phoebes (most numerous migrants this morning) moving over as well as other species. Quick walks through Drier-Offerman and Six Diamonds yielded some decent birds among the more common migrants. Drier-Offerman Vesper Sparrow (dirt parking lot) Eastern Meadowlark American Pipit White-crowned Sparrows Indigo Bunting Yellow-rumped Warblers were flying over in groups of 4-10 birds just about the entire time I was there. Savannah Sparrows were numerous. Six Diamonds Orange-crowned Warbler Ovenbird (2) Wilson's Warbler Black & White Warbler Northern Parula Savannah Sparrows were numerous. White-crowned Sparrows Field Sparrow Good birding, Sean Sime Brooklyn, NY ________________________________ CSI Tops MONEY magazine’s Best Colleges list for 2015-2016><http://csitoday.com/2015/07/csi-tops-money-magazines-best-colleges-list-for-2015-2016/> -- 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/ --
