ABA Blog

#ABArare - Red-necked Stint - Massachusetts

It's late June and that means one thing here at the #ABArare offices: It's Stint Season!

The first of this year's season is a Red-necked Stint (Code 3) in Massachusetts. It was found at Sandy Point State Reservation on June 27 by Suzanne Sullivan. Sandy Point State Reservation is on Plum Island, at the extreme southern end of Parker River National Wildlife Refuge (NWR).

photo by Suzanne Sullivan

You may recall that Sullivan found a Common Ringed Plover at the same location just last month. My understanding is that, on June 27, the stint was at the southernmost tip of land, essentially exactly where the Plover had been. However, on June 28, it was found slightly to the north. On the ABA Rare Bird Alert group on Facebook, Danny Akers wrote that it was near the first parking lot as you enter Sandy Point State Reservation. From that lot, walk east to the beach, turn north, and go to the "No Entry" signs. The bird was foraging to the north. (I created a map that I believe shows the location. Feel free to correct me in the comments if I'm wrong.)

The bird will probably move around the area a bit if it sticks around, so the best strategy for finding it may be looking for a large group of birders (see below). Quite a few birders were out on the 28th, and there will probably be numbers looking throughout the weekend. The best place for updates is the MassBird listserv (viewable through the ABA's Birding News here).

Birders twitching the Red-necked Stint, June 28, 2013. Photo by Dawn Simmons Fine

Sandy Point State Reservation and Parker River NWR are located to the southeast of Newburyport and northeast of Boston.

#ABArare - Tropical Kingbird - Pennsylvania

It is perhaps the great irony of the internet birding age that, with so many various options for reporting bird sightings, it can be hard for would-be vagrant chasers to know where to look to get the most up-to-date information. Take, for instance, an odd yellow-bellied kingbird discovered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on June 20 by Alex Zorach, who photographed it and posted to the Facebook Birders group.

Luckily ABA Events coordinator George Armistead noticed the photos and quickly went to the spot and confirmed what is now being confidently identified by morphology and vocalizations as a Tropical Kingbird. Pending acceptance this is a first state record for Pennsylvania

photo by George Armistead, used with permision

The bird has been seen at Gray's Ferry Cresent Trail Park, a short greenway running along the east bank of the Schuylkill River. The precise location where the bird has been seen is marked on this map by original finder Alex Zorach. Parking is available at the park entrance at the corner of Wharton and Schuylkill, about a half mile walk away.

Tropical Kingbird breeds in the ABA Area only in extreme southeastern Arizona and the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas, but ranges throughout the Neotropics as far south as central Argentina.  As a vagrant, it has shown up all over the continent, including not once, but twice, in Ketchikan, Alaska, and as far northeast as Maine and Quebec. 

Steven Mlodinow writes in The Tropical Kingbird North of Mexico (.pdf) (NAB 52:01) that Tropical Kingbird shows a couple different patterns of vagarancy on each side of the continent. This species is regular in fall up the Pacific Coast, and those mostly immature birds are almost certainly from residents in northwest Mexico. 

The occurrence of birds in the western Interior and the east, however, is less certain.  Some are undoubtedly overshoots from the Arizona and northern Mexico populations, but Mlodinow suggests that perhaps others may be austral migrants originating from the South American population, arriving in North American much in the same way Fork-tailed Flycatchers appear annually. 

#ABArare - Lesser White-fronted Goose - Alaska

You may have noticed that, except for the hashtag that begins the titles, I rarely use the word "rare" in these posts. Almost all the species I write about are actually quite common in their normal range. While they may be rarities in the context of the ABA Area, they are usually far from rare on a global scale. However, for this post, we have a bird that's rare no matter how you look at it, Lesser White-fronted Goose (Code 5), a species that's listed as "Vulnerable" on the IUCN Red List due to large population declines throughout it's Old World range.

photo by Doug Gochfeld

One of these small Eurasian geese was discovered at St. Paul, Alaska on the morning of June 21 by Laura Lestenkof. She called the guides on the island (Scott Schuette, Doug Gochfeld, and Cameron Cox) to let them know that she found a dark goose that she couldn't identify. They were shocked to see it was a Lesser White-fronted. Shortly after being identified, an arctic fox flushed it, and it flew away. It wasn't refound later on the 21st, but the weather was poor for birding, and it's suspected to still be on the island.

photo by Doug Gochfeld

Lesser White-fronted Goose has been found in the ABA Area only one time previously. One was seen at Attu on June 5, 1994, but given that its global population is estimated to be 28,000-33,000 individuals and a decreasing population trend, a second record wasn't on the radar. To put its rarity another way, I'm considering raiding the kid's college fund to chase this bird.

Speaking of chasing it, information on visiting St. Paul and taking part in guided birding tours is available here. The island is one of the best places in the ABA Area for finding Asian vagrants, and this fall, the ABA is hosting two rarity-hunting tours as part of its events program. A few spaces remain on both.

#ABArare - Dark-sided Flycatcher - Alaska

Mainland Alaska just got its first Dark-sided Flycatcher (and I believe mainland North America too, but correct me if I'm wrong).  Thede Tobish, Nick Hajdukovich, Lisa Oakley, and Luke DeCicco found this Code 4 species at Barrow, Alaska on June 17.

 

photos by Luke DeCicco

The bird was found near the DEW line site northeast of town (map here). There are signs that this is a restricted area, but DeCicco reports that a person on site said it was OK to bird this area, though they were cautioned to be careful about contanimants. At this time, it's unclear if others should check in before birding this area or if blanket permission was obtained.

To get to this site, drive northeast on Stevenson St. (the road that parallels the Chukchi Sea shoreline) to Dewline Rd. Turn right and continue to its end. The Dark-sided Flycatcher was found at the west end of the two long buildings.

Previous ABA Area records have come from Alaska's islands in the Bering Sea region. There is also a record from Bermuda.

#ABArare - White-throated Needletail - Alaska

#ABArare guru John Puschock sends word of a MEGA in western Alaska.

On June 5, Jess Findlay was hiking down Attu’s Weston Mountain when a swift streaked past him. He was able to snap a few photographs before it flew off. While far from the best photos, they were good enough to show that it was the ABA Area’s fifth White-throated Needletail (Code 5).

photos by Jess Findlay

Since the discontinuation of Attours in 2000, the only tour company running spring trips to the legendary island has been John's Zugunruhe Birding Tours. You can get more information about future trips to Attu at his website.

Prior to this record, Attu has two previous reports of this species (1978, 1984). The other two are from nearby Shemya (1974, 1985). It hasn’t been seen in the ABA Area since 1985.

All sight records likely refer to the migratory caudacutus subspecies.

#ABArare - Variegated Flycatcher - Florida

This afternoon (June 5) Diane Reed discovered an odd streaked flycatcher along the power lines at Guana Preserve near St. Augustine, St. John's County, Florida. The photos strongly suggest an ABA Code 5 Variegated Flycatcher, which would be only the fifth record for the ABA Area and a first for Florida.

photos by Diane Reed, used with permission

Guana River Environmental Center is about 40 miles south of Jacksonville, Florida, and north of St. Augustine. To get there travel south on I-295 from Jacksonville, getting off at Butler Boulevard (FL-202) and turning south onto FL-A1A when the road ends. The street address is 505 Guana River Road, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL.

Please note that ADMISSION is $2 for adults, $1 for children age 10 to 17 and free for children under age 10.

The bird was last seen around 8 PM this evening (6/5). When you arrive go through the pay station and check the check all of the power lines before reaching the restrooms. Reed reports that the bird was hanging out just above a gray fence with a trash dumpster behind it on the right on the power line

Variegated Flycatcher, Empidonomus varius, is a tropical South American species and the nominate subspecies, varius, is a long-distant austral migrant which winters in northern South America and the western Amazon basin. 

There are four records of this species in the ABA Area previously, literally from all corners of the continent. The first ABA-Area record of this species was one photographed at Biddeford Pool, Maine in 1977. Subsequent records have come from Obion, Tennessee (1984), Toronto, Ontario (1993), and Franklin, Washington (2008).

Interestingly, this is the second report of the species in Florida. That first bird, seen at Dry Tortugas NP, was subsequently identified as the very similar Piratic Flycatcher. For visual comparisons between Variegated and Piratic Flycatchers, Martin Reid's website (follow the link) has excellent photos and a study of the two species.

 

#ABArare - Common Ringed Plover - Massachusetts

Those much vaunted ABA rarity codes, created way back when to quickly judge the relative scarcity of a given vagrant to our shores, are not perfect. For starters, birds that breed in Canada or the US, regardless of their rarity anywhere else in those two nations, are given codes 1 or 2 with only a disclaimer admitting that some code 2 birds are harder to find that many of those with code 3 or even 4  suggesting that there is more to the story. This is why a bird like Common Ringed Plover, despite nesting on Baffin Island in a remote part of arctic Nunavut, is a mere code 2.

That's a roundabout way of saying that the Common Ringed Plover discovered by Suzzane Sullivan in Essex, Massachusetts, on May 20th is a much bigger deal than its ABA code would indicate.

photo by Jason Forbes

The bird was seen at Parker Island NWR, often referred to as Plum Island, which is east of Newburyport and just over an hour north of Boston on the Newburyport Turnpike. More specifically, the bird was seen amongst Semipalmated Plovers on Sandy Point near the Piping Plover enclosures, which is the extreme south end of the island and refuge.

Please note that due to a road improvement project at Parker Island NWR, Sandy Point has limited access. Monday through Thursday the road is closed to ALL traffic. On Friday, the road is one-lane until noon, when it is fully open through the weekend. More information is available here.

UPDATE: My mistake. The construction was completed last week and the road is completely open. 

Common Ringed Plover is primarily a Eurasian species, but as mentioned earlier is fairly common in its restricted North American range including the northeastern coast of Baffin Island and Ellesmere Island in the ABA Area. The nominate subspecies, C. h. hiaticula, breeds from northeastern Canada to Western Europe.

Records for Common Ringed Plover on the east coast are few and far between and this is apparently only the sixth such record south of Canada. It has been recorded from Massachusetts at least twice before (1990, 2010), and also from Rhode Island (1991), Maine (2003), and New York (2008). There are several records from eastern Canada in Quebec, Newfoundland, and Nova Scotia. Additionally, the species has been recorded for the Pacific Coast from Washington (2006) and California (2011).

Given the species' identification challenges, particularly its similarity to Semipalmated Plover, this may be one that is more regular than the records would suggest.

 

#ABArare - Little Egret - Newfoundland

On May 18, Pierre Ryan found a pair of egrets in Fair Haven, Newfoundland, and reported the pair as Snowy Egrets, which are rare but annual in the province. His photos and description of the birds' plumes led to suspicion that one or both of these birds may be ABA Code 4 Little Egret, an identification that was subsequently confirmed for one of them.

Locals have reported that the two egrets have been present since at least May 12, not always together and occasionally moving up a small river and out of sign for longer periods of time. This would be the 9th record of the species for Newfoundland.

photo by Jared Clarke, used with permission

Fair Haven is about an hour and a half west of St. John's, Newfoundland. From the Trans-Canada Highway turn west onto NL-203 S all the way to the bay.

Although Little Egret is an ABA Code-4 bird, the European range of this species is expanding and some ornithologists predict that Little Egret in North America may begin to expand in a manner similar to what has been occurring in Europe.

#ABArare - Slate-throated Redstart - Arizona

On May 18 an ABA Code 4 Slate-throated Redstart was discovered by P.D. Hulce at the Southwestern Research Station at Cave Creek Canyon in Cochise, Arizona. The bird was refound later and seen by several people, hopefully suggesting that this one will stick around for a little bit.

photo by Chris West, used with permission

Cave Creek Canyon is about 3 hours southeast of Tucson, Arizona. From I-10, exit at Road Forks, New Mexico. Take Hwy 80 south approximately 30 miles to route 533.  Turn right (west) on route 533 and go approximately 7 miles to Portal, Arizona.  You’ll know you’re in Portal when you see Portal Peak Lodge on your left.  Continue up the mountain, staying on pavement, another five miles.

As the Southwestern Research Station is an education and research facility, special rules apply to the viewing of this bird. It is very strongly recommended that birders seeking this redstart take these rules seriously. Please refer to a post on AZ-NM listserv by Richard Webster, the important points of which are copied below:

The bird can be seen from the main (public) road up Cave Creek Canyon. The bird also spends time where it can't be seen from the road, but in order to bird on the SWRS property, SWRS is now requesting that folks sign a release form in the office. The office is open from 8 to 5, roughly, subject to lunch. Birders can look for the redstart from the road at any point, and on the SWRS property once you have checked in with the office and signed.

The Redstart was first seen and was re-found a couple of times along North Fork, which is the creek closest to the main road and the one that goes by the hummingbird feeders (this is below the swimming pool that you see from the main road); it was primarily seen below the hummingbird feeders, where the creek passes between the maintenance area and main road. It was also seen several times along the Main/Middle Fork of Cave Creek down canyon from the maintenance area.

Slate-throated Redstart is a common, variable, and widespread neotropical species ranging from northern Mexico south to southern Bolivia. The subspecies from northern Mexico has red on its breast and belly.  In Guatemala the red is replaced by orange-red underparts grading to yellow in Panama south (Warblers, Dunn and Garrett).

Records of this species in the ABA Area are mostly from Southeast Arizona and Texas. There is one additional record from New Mexico. (ABA Checklist, Pranty et al.).

#ABArare - Green Sandpiper, Tundra Bean-Goose - Alaska

The rarity season in Alaska started with a bang on St. Paul Island this week when Doug Gochfeld and Scott Schuette, both with St. Paul Island Tours, found on near consecutive days an ABA Code 4 Green Sandpiper and a Code 3 Tundra Bean-Goose. The sandpiper was found on Thursday (5/16) and hasn't been seen since, and the goose was found this morning (5/18).

photo by Doug Gochfeld

St Paul Island is accessible by air via several Alaskan airports, most notably Anchorage, on Penair Airlines. The ABA is holding an event there this fall.

Green Sandpiper is a very infrequent vagrant to the Bering Sea region. This record is about the 12th for the ABA Area, but only the third away from the western Aleutians.

Tundra Bean-Goose is a casual vagrant to western Alaska, with most records in the spring. Many Alaska records can only be assigned to bean-goose species because the former Bean Goose sightings were not identified to subspecies at the time. The AOU split Bean Goose into two species, Taiga and Tundra Bean-Goose in 2007 in their annual supplement.  

More, undoubtedly, to come from western Alaska as the spring goes on.