Coming soon after a sighting from Savannah N.Y., this Maine Gray Kingbird is of interest: http://groups.google.com/group/maine-birds/browse_thread/thread/4524cb204d7da84a# - - - Today, Sunday Oct. 31, while counting raptors at Hook Mt. in Rockland County (with views of the Hudson River and south to Nyack, the nearest town), I noticed a bird in flight that only very briefly appeared just east of the summit where the Hook Mt. hawk-watch is conducted - the bird appeared to be a Martin species. I have very recently (only a few weeks ago) had the opportunity to study several S. American species as well as wintering Purple Martins and this bird did not look quite like any of those, which included Gray-breasted and Brown-chested. I would only speculate that this bird could have been of a 'Caribbean' form or species, but unfortunately the bird did not reappear up around the summit of the mountain. The observation came in mid-afternnoon. There were no other martin or swallows seen. For those curious the area where I studied 3 martin spp. not long ago was Amazonian Brazil. The raptors were flying nicely today and it was also a fairly good day for waterbird migration, over the river.
1 Short-eared Owl was observed earlier, near the Piermont marsh also along the Hudson in Rockland Co. - that seen around sunrise. - - - "at the Public Library: Little Yellow Bird" (NY Times - Prothonotary piece) http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/31/library-warbler-barron/?hp Good birding, Tom Fiore, Manhattan -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html 3) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
