After being tortured by all the good stuff reported at Cupsogue i
finally had the opportunity to go there today.
in addition to the Common, Least, Foster's, and Roseate Terns; Bob
Hayes, Lisa Scheppke and I had 3 Black Terns, two Sandwich Terns. and
a Red-necked Phalarope.
An additional very interesting bird that was seen was a larger tern,
that I was initially drawn to by its size, and having heard of recent
sightings of Royal Tern, that was my first impression. Further
examination of the bird left me questioning this ID, as the bill was not
stocky enough, and appeared long and orange, and not quite right for a
more stocky and or red bill as expected for a Royal. The bird was
distant, and we did our best to approach for better views; frustrated
however by the angle of the bird and incessant preening. Recalling the
Elegant Tern I had seen last september in NJ, I believe that this is a
distinct possibility. The birds were put up and I could not relocate it,
nor did I get any photos. N.B. the Elegant Tern in NJ was initially
misidentified as a Royal FWIW.
Birders visiting Cupsogue should double check any 'royals' they see.
Arie Gilbert
North Babylon, NY
WWW.Powerbirder.blogspot.com
WWW.qcbirdclub.org
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