November 2013 S i g h t i n g S sightings, available online to ABA members OctOber 1–31, 2013 only, have been posted to the ABA website: aba.org/birding
Amy Davis • Downingtown, Pennsylvania • [email protected]
“Sightings” appears monthly, alternating between Birding and Birding Online
Summary: A terrific migration was topped off by the dis- have been accepted as Apus sp. Also in inland CA was an covery on St. Paul I., AK of the ABA Area’s 1st Common apparent Tundra Bean-Goose at the Salton Sea, the state’s Redstart. This striking Old World flycatcher breeds in 1st if accepted. A belated report of a Crested Eagle came Eurasia and winters mainly in Africa. Another fantastic from the Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve in Chiapas 9/24; Eurasian stray to the western half of the continent was an just 1 previous well-documented record exists from Mexi- apparent Common Swift photographed in inland CA. This co. The species’ range is broken into 4 separate regions that bird, too, breeds across much of Eurasia and winters in extend from Guatemala to extreme ne. Argentina. IN’s 1st Africa. In the ABA Area, the species has been documented Lesser Sand-Plover was a terrific find for the Midwest, in AK, and records from MA, PA, and St. Pierre et Miquelon preceded in the region only by 1 record from Ontario in
Hermit Warbler. Observatoire d’oiseaux de Tadoussac, Québec; 29 October 2013. Photo by © Samuel Denault.
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Lazuli Bunting. Hadley, Massachusetts; 2 October 2013. Photo by © Ian Davies.
1983. While new reports of the species dropped off, Blue- and a 3rd individual was notable in Aroostook, ME 10/1–5. footed Boobies continued in several CA counties, and A Pacific Loon was a good find on L. Champlain in Chit- adding to the recent spate of wandering Brown Boobies was tenden, VT 10/23, and 2 were seen there 10/27. A Brown ON’s 1st. Potential state and provincial 1sts not mentioned Booby was seen from Provincetown, Cape Cod, MA 10/12– above included Red-necked Grebe (Baja California), Laugh- 13. Notable in NS were a Glossy Ibis on Bon Portage I. ing Gull (ID), Red-bellied Woodpecker (OR), Black- 10/16 and a Golden Eagle on Brier I. 10/14. A Black Skim- chinned Hummingbird (CT), Calliope Hummingbird mer turned up in Hampton Harbor, NH 10/1–3. (NH), Rock Wren (ME), MacGillivray’s Warbler (SC), and Two fabulous trochilids were CT’s 1st Black-chinned Hermit Warbler (QC). Finally, a Common Linnet in NY was Hummingbird, discovered in Fairfield and identified some intriguing, but of unknown provenance. time later, and NH’s 1st Calliope Hummingbird in Hills- borough 10/6–31; in MA, the latter species was found on Northeast: ME’s 5th Pink-footed Goose was found in Nantucket 10/19–22, where it represented the state’s 8th Aroostook 10/19; others turned up in Bonavista, NL 10/11– record. Stray flycatchers also made an impression: An Ash- 31 and Truro, NS 10/18–31. Also in Truro, NS was a Bar- throated Flycatcher was found on Monhegan I., ME 10/21; nacle Goose 10/18–31, and another was in Aroostook, ME a Gray Kingbird at Tadoussac, QC 10/16 was the 10/29. NS’s 2nd Ross’s Goose was in Windsor 10/10–31; province’s 3rd, and it or another was at Baie-Sainte-Cather- 1 also appeared in NB at Sainte-Marie-de-Kent 10/19–31, ine 10/23–25; and NL’s 2nd Scissor-tailed Flycatcher lin- where it represented that province’s 2nd record, as well, gered in Torbay 10/10–20. A Bell’s Vireo on Bailey I., in
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Casco Bay, Cumberland 10/22 represented ME’s 4th or 5th record, and a Western War- bling Vireo banded on Bon Portage I., NS 10/24 made one of the taxon’s few docu- mented appearances in the East. A Rock Wren was well- described in Washington, ME 10/29, where it will be a state 1st if accepted; another was reported from Pointe-á-la- Frègate Cloridorme, QC 10/23. S. Kingstown, RI host- ed a Northern Wheatear 10/19–25. A Townsend’s Soli- taire was noteworthy on Monhegan I., ME 10/2, and another was found in Somer- set 10/16. In QC, a Yellow- Black-chinned Hummingbird. Fairfield County, Connecticut; 2 November 2013. throated Warbler was in Cap- Photo by © Mark Szantyr. Chat 10/27–31, and the province’s 1st Hermit Warbler was in Tadoussac 10/29. A Fort Erie, ON, where it was present through 10/31, and Lazuli Bunting in Hampshire 10/2 was MA’s 2nd of the sea- represented an exceptional record away from the Atlantic son and 5th overall, and elsewhere in the state, a Painted Coast. A flyby Sabine’s Gull at Cape Henlopen Hawk Bunting was in Suffolk 10/22. Watch 10/12 represented one of just a few records from DE. An Arctic Tern near Syracuse 10/4 was a good find in East-Central: A Brown Booby was discovered on the up- upstate NY. In NJ, a Gray Kingbird appeared at Edwin B. per Niagara R. 10/7 and appeared in both Buffalo, NY and Forsythe NWR 10/17, and a Northern Wheatear was a 1- day wonder at Great Bay Boulevard WMA in Ocean 10/12.
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher. Torbay, Newfoundland; 10 October 2013. Photo by © Bruce Mactavish.
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WV’s 3rd Le Conte’s Sparrow was in Grant 10/27. A Har- Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher at Ft. Zachary Taylor SP in Key ris’s Sparrow was in Susquehanna, PA 10/28. A Common West 10/24–25 and a Fork-tailed Flycatcher at Lido Key, Linnet found in Queens, NY 10/9–31 may have been an Sarasota 10/2. SC’s 1st MacGillivray’s Warbler was band- escaped cage bird; there are no accepted records of the ed at Kiawah I. 10/19. A Harris’s Sparrow turned up in species from the ABA Area, although there are several in- Rutherford, TN 10/29. triguing historical records from NY. North-Central: A Mottled Duck was at Clinton L., De Southeast: Rare waterfowl reported from the region were Witt, IL 10/25. Despite increasing out-of-range appear- a Fulvous Whistling-Duck continuing in Shelby, TN 10/17 ances by the species, a Brown Booby was still an unex- and a Mottled Duck in New Hanover, NC 10/12. In KY, 2 pected 1st for ON when it appeared on the Niagara R. Eared Grebes were in Union 10/10, and a Great White 10/7–31 in the Fort Erie area. Four Neotropic Cormorants [Great Blue] Heron was in Hardin 10/23. GA’s 3rd White- turned up at a Clinton, IA wetland 10/13. A long-lingering faced Ibis was in Sumter 10/20–24. A Bar-tailed Godwit Brown Pelican continued at Cleveland, OH through 10/12. was in Pasco, FL 10/18, and a Red Phalarope was in WI’s 5th White-tailed Kite persisted in Adams through Carlisle, KY 10/25. The usual cast of itinerant flycatchers 10/28. A juv. Lesser Sand-Plover was a fabulous find at put on a well-received show, including a Scissor-tailed Fly- Michigan City Harbor on L. Michigan 10/15, where it rep- catcher in Northampton, VA 10/11–14, Say’s Phoebes in resented a 1st for IN; after going unreported for 6 days, DeSoto, FL 10/20 and Sumter, GA 10/21, and TN’s 5th Ash- the bird was found nearby at Indiana Dunes National throated Flycatcher in Marion 10/7–14. Also, FL hosted a Lakeshore 10/21. Ruffs were discovered at Quivira NWR,
Bar-tailed Godwit. Anclote Island, Florida; 18 October 2013. Photo by © Melissa James.
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KS 10/6–13 and in Adams, WI 10/13. Single Arctic Terns were in McLean, IL 10/8 and on L. Superior in Duluth, MN 10/28. An Anna’s Hummingbird in Charles Mix 10/22–31 was the 3rd found in SD this year. A Say’s Phoebe was pho- tographed in McLean, IL 10/5, and KS’s 2nd Great Kiskadee continued at McPherson State Fishing L. in McPherson. A Scissor-tailed Flycatcher was in Carroll, IA 10/12. IN’s 2nd Fork-tailed Flycatcher made a charac- teristically brief appearance in Vermillion 10/30. A White- eyed Vireo was at Standing Bear L., Douglas, NE 10/4. A Black-billed Magpie was found in St. Louis, MO 10/14; while escapees must be considered when out-of-range in- dividuals of this species are encountered, the date on which this bird was seen is consistent with a vagrant of Common Redstart. St. Paul Island, Alaska; 8 October 2013. wild origin. Photo by © Doug Gochfeld.
South-Central: Three Brown Boobies were photographed Warbler was at Frontera Audubon Center in Hidalgo perched on a gas rig at Calcasieu L. in Cameron, LA 10/24 10/12–31. and continued there 10/30. A Vermilion Flycatcher re- turned to a golf course in DeWitt, AR for the 3rd consec- Mexico: Baja California hosted a Red-necked Grebe at utive fall 10/14. A Fork-tailed Flycatcher was in Cameron, Estero Punta Banda 10/31, the 1st for the state and the re- TX near Boca Chica SP. Also in TX, a Golden-crowned gion. Spectacular though belated was the report of Mexi-
Lesser Sand-Plover. Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, Indiana; 15 October 2013. Photo by © John C. Kendall.
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co’s 2nd Crested Eagle from the Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve in Chiapas 9/24. A male Golden-winged Warbler was out of range at Lake Pátzcuaro, Michoacán 10/4. In Chiapas, San Cristóbal de las Casas hosted single Black- throated Blue and Western Palm warblers 10/17 and 10/30, respectively. Red-bellied Woodpecker. Interior West: An American Black Duck was a good find La Grande, Oregon; 1 November 2013. at Astotin L. near Edmonton, AB 10/24. Black Scoters were Photo by © Owen Schmidt. in Washington, UT 10/14, and at least 4 were noted in the Calgary, AB area, while Trestle Bay, SK hosted 3 on 10/23, and yet another was in Flathead, MT 10/23–27. A Red- NV 10/30. Two Laughing Gulls at American Falls Res. in throated Loon also appeared in Flathead, MT 10/27, and a Powers, ID 10/27 constituted a state 1st. Washoe, NV host- Yellow-billed Loon was on Chestermere L., AB 10/20. ed a Heermann’s Gull 10/6. A Western Gull in Larimer Wandering larids put in a good showing in the West: MT’s 10/5 may prove to be only the 2nd accepted for CO. A 2nd Little Gull was at Freezeout L. in Teton 10/14, and Lesser Black-backed Gull at Langdon 10/26 was the only others were noted at Radisson L., SK 10/11–14, as well as 1 reported from AB thus far this fall. Parasitic Jaegers were in Pueblo, CO 10/4–6, Davis, UT 10/22–23, and Washoe, in Washoe, NV 10/6–7 and Utah, UT 10/12, and a Long-
Apparent Tundra Bean-Goose. Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge, California; 19 October 2013. Photo by © Garrett MacDonald.
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tailed Jaeger was in Teton, MT 10/18. A Plain-capped Starthroat continued at the Patons’ in AZ through 10/15. A total of 6 Anna’s Hummingbirds was out- standing in Calgary, AB. In AZ, a Nutting’s Flycatcher was found at Bill Williams R. NWR for the 3rd fall in a row; also in AZ, a Blue Jay was in Corral Canyon 10/26–31, and a Sinaloa Wren continued in Huachuca Canyon through 10/28, while a Tennessee Warbler was at Tubac 10/30 and a Magnolia Warbler was in Tucson 10/10. UT hosted Mag- nolia and Bay-breasted warblers in Washington 10/10 and Salt Lake 10/16, respectively, and in ID, a Black-throated Blue Warbler was at Market L. WMA in Jefferson 10/13. At least 3 Rufous-capped Warblers continued at Hunter Canyon, AZ through 10/6, and multiple birds were also reported from Florida Canyon through 10/25 and Miller Canyon 10/17.
Alaska: A Great Crested Flycatcher in Petersburg was the state’s 3rd, and a Warbling Vireo was in Seward 10/27–28. A Common Redstart dropped in on St. Paul I. in the Pri- Apparent Common Swift. Desert Center, California; bilofs 10/8, the 1st for the state and the ABA Area. Not as 30 October 2013. Photo by © Oscar Johnson staggeringly rare, but also nice on St. Paul, was a Gray Wagtail 10/13. A Lazuli Bunting was at Campbell Creek spectacular 1st for CA and the Lower 48. OR’s 1st Red- Estuary Natural Area in Anchorage 10/11–20. bellied Woodpecker was discovered in Union 10/31. In CA, a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher was in San Luis Obispo Pacific Coast: An apparent Tundra Bean-Goose at the 10/11–14, and Great Crested Flycatchers were found in Salton Sea 10/19 was a potential 1st for CA; 1 previous San Diego 10/9–15 and on the Farallones 10/10; a Great record, also from the Salton Sea, was accepted as bean- Crested also appeared in Chilliwack, BC 10/29–31, where goose sp. A Great Shearwater seen off San Diego during a it represented the 3rd provincial record. Also in BC, a pelagic trip 10/13 constituted a 1st fall record for s. CA; the Tropical Kingbird was at Swan L., Victoria 10/4–8. Yellow- species appeared off Monterey 10/5, and 2 more were tal- green Vireos continued to appear in s. CA, where they lied during a trip out of Westport, WA 10/6. A Manx turned up in San Diego 10/9, Ventura 10/18–19, and San Shearwater was seen during the latter trip 10/5, another Luis Obispo 10/13. A Yellow Wagtail was at Royston, Van- turned up just off Ventura, CA 10/8, and another was seen couver I., BC 10/12, and a Red-throated Pipit was in Ben- from shore in Lincoln, OR 10/19. Two Masked Boobies oc- ton, OR 10/30. More CA highlights included a Blue-winged cupied a buoy off Long Beach, Los Angeles, CA 10/6–29, Warbler in San Luis Obispo 10/18–23, a Le Conte’s Spar- and a phalanx of Blue-footed Boobies continued in CA, row in San Diego 10/25, and Painted Buntings in San Luis with reports coming from Imperial, Riverside, San Bernardi- Obispo 10/10–13 and Humboldt 10/12–23. In BC, a Dick- no, Los Angeles, Ventura, Monterey, Santa Cruz, and Marin. cissel was at Victoria 10/2 and a Bobolink was at Haida Also in CA, a Black Vulture was at Morro Bay SP 10/1, and Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Is.) 10/11. Unexpected icterids almost certainly the same individual was seen in the city of included a Rusty Blackbird in Monterey, CA 10/27–28 and San Luis Obispo 10/31. Shorebirds in the Golden State in- an Orchard Oriole at Tofino, BC 10/12. cluded Sharp-tailed Sandpipers in Santa Cruz 10/7–12, Monterey 10/7–12, and Santa Barbara 10/11, and a Ruff in Hawaiian Islands: Migrant shorebirds stole the show in Sonoma 10/31. HI, with single Gray-tailed Tattlers at Honouliuli, O‘ahu Noteworthy in BC was a Yellow-billed Cuckoo at Vaseux 10/2 and Kea-lia Pond NWR, Maui 10/22, a Buff-breasted Lake Bird Observatory 10/16. An Apus swift, apparently a Sandpiper at Hilo, Hawai‘i 10/15, and a Wilson’s Phalarope Common Swift, photographed in Riverside 10/30, was a at Honouliuli 10/1.
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