I just had one of the more surreal sightings in local birding I've ever experienced. As I went out in the yard here in Northeast Ithaca this evening to check for nighthawks, I spotted a bird soaring up overhead that, after a quick double take where I tried to turn it into a gull and then a nighthawk, I realized was a small JAEGER. It headed southeast and, incredibly, was spotted by Tristan Herwood and Chris Sayers from Bluegrass Lane shortly thereafter, where they watched it continue up and out of sight to the south. Shape and proportions seem diagnostic for LONG-TAILED over Parasitic to us.
Checklist with more details, as well as some very poor photos (phone through binoculars): https://ebird.org/atlasny/checklist/S73362969 Pretty bizarre, but a good reminder to keep an eye out at all times—and always carry a camera. -- Jay McGowan jw...@cornell.edu -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
