Experience has shown that most hurricane blown birds immediately return out-to-sea. You have to get out there during the storm or as soon as possible afterward.
On Sep 4, 2019, at 4:44 PM, Purbita Saha wrote: > Thank you Shai and Peter for these insights. What day do you recommend going > out then to see what this devastating event dredges up? Saturday morning? > (Sorry if you already mentioned). > > Cheers, > Purbita Saha > > On Wed, Sep 4, 2019 at 5:07 AM Shaibal Mitra <[email protected]> > wrote: > Dear Peter, > > It's amazing to hear these first-hand accounts of your experiences in past > storms! And yes, access could be an issue for any storm that directly affects > our area. But a major reason why I posted these summaries was to show people > with less experience the birding potential of storms, like David, Fran, and > Ernesto, that pass inland well to the west of us and pose less of a direct > weather challenge to us. I particularly recall Ernesto, which after seemingly > immense hype regarding direct threats to Long Island, made landfall so far > south and west that birders mainly ignored him. I vividly recall driving over > the bridges to the beach in the morning and seeing Great South Bay's glassy, > mirror-like surface--"it's a mill pond!" I exclaimed to Pat, using indelicate > expressions as well. Even so, we had great birds that morning. Storms like > dorian that churn past to the south cause much more trouble and produce far > fewer rarities for us than do storms like David. > > Shai Mitra > Bay Shore > ________________________________________ > From: Peter Post [[email protected]] > Sent: Wednesday, September 4, 2019 12:39 AM > To: Shaibal Mitra > Cc: NYSBIRDS ([email protected]) > Subject: Re: [nysbirds-l] Hurricane Dorian > > All well and good, but the problem nowadays is access, access, access! Or I > should say lack of access! > > I spent most of the Sept. 7th, 1979, during hurricane David, at Robert Mosses > SP. Every 10 or 15 minutes a small flock of Sooty Terns would fly by with an > occasional Bridled. By the end of the day I totaled 90 Sooty and 3 Bridled. > Nowadays that beach is closed during hurricanes! > > On Sept. 27, 1985, during hurricane Gloria, the Jones Beach strip was open in > the morning but closed in the afternoon unless you could prove you had a > house on the strip. And it's been closed during hurricanes ever since. The > authorities I am told are afraid of looting. As a result I missed the 3,000 > Cape May warblers that day, but I was able to get out to Pt. Lookout where a > Northern Phalarope was spinning in a puddle in the parking lot. And where I > had my first intermedius Lesser Black-backed Gull for NY. > > During hurricane Irene, August, 27, 2011, I went to Central Park in the > morning hoping to see some storm blown birds. I ignored the signs that the > park was closed. The City is afraid that they will be sued if a branch or > tree hits or kills someone. There was nothing of interest on the Great Lawn > and the reservoir was covered in thick flog. I passed several police who > ignored me but I ran into the parks Director of Operations, whom I knew, and > who tried to evict me. Later that afternoon I tried my luck at Riverside > Park, where I ran into Dale Dancis and was later joined by Ardith Bondi. I > added both Sooty and Bridled Terns, Wilson's and Leach's Storm-Petrels, Royal > Tern, and White-tailed Tropicbird to my NY County list. Ardith had a large > dark swift which I couldn't get on. Unfortunate, because there was a Black > Swift seen at Cape May that day! (All of this was written up in the Linnaean > Newsletter). The following year, during hurricane Sandy, one couldn't get > near the Hudson River. They authorities threatened us with arrest if we > didn't leave. We had to hide as best we could. But before being kicked out I > added Oystercatcher and Black Scoter to my NY Co., list. > > If it isn't the closing of areas it's the downing of trees/power lines. > During one hurricane years ago I got as far as Bridgehampton. Downed tress > blocked my way from going any further east or to the beaches. When I tried > going back home a recently downed tree blocked my return. I wound up spending > the afternoon in the Bridgehampton High School which had been setup as a > shelter. Free coffee and donuts.Tony Lauro and Paul Buckley managed to make > it to Montauk Pt., but had to use a chainsaw to get there. > > Peter Post > > > > On Sep 3, 2019, at 8:57 PM, Shaibal Mitra wrote: > > > The earliest models for Dorian’s track indicated a likelihood that the > > storm would track almost due north and pass to the west of Long Island—or > > at least parts of Long Island. This is the scenario that is likely to > > produce tropical terns and other Gulf Stream birds onshore on Long Island. > > With many people talking about Dorian and buzzing over the potential for > > storm birds, I’ve pulled out maps and bird data for several storms that > > passed west of or across Long Island near this date: David (1979), Fran > > (1996), Floyd (1999), Ernesto (2006), and Irene (2011)—all of these were > > productive for storm birds. > > > > For better or worse, at this point, it appears that Dorian will almost > > certainly whip out to sea to the south and east of us, as so many tropical > > systems do. Storms of this sort often interrupt the trans-oceanic > > migrations of species that would otherwise pass over us (various > > shorebirds, jaegers, Black Tern, etc.), but they do not bring tropical > > terns, etc. > > > > (Note: my obvious desire to see storm birds has NO influence on the weather > > and is not responsible for any harm or good wrought by any storm; the storm > > will do what it does, and we may simply wish to be prepared for the > > ornithological as well as other consequences). > > > > Shai Mitra > > Bay Shore > > > > > > 1979 Major Hurricane David > > > > https://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/atlantic/1979/Major-Hurricane-David > > > > From Richard L. Ferren, summarizing effects in Rhode Island: “A minimum of > > 62 Sooty Terns, at least five Bridled Terns, and a Brown Noddy passed Point > > Judith heading northeastward in the very late afternoon hours, with > > additional Sooties audibly passing the point after dark. Other Sooties were > > found dead at Napatree Point and seen exhausted inland at Kingston, while > > eight oystercatchers appeared at Napatree. More Sandwich Terns were seen > > the next day. Five Royal, 16 Black, and one Gull-billed Tern, and three > > Black Skimmers were also seen. A flock of 68 Red and six Red-necked > > Phalaropes at Galilee, and a Red-necked Phalarope and seven Black Terns > > were seen inland at Richmond the day of the storm; eight oystercatchers at > > Napatree the day after was then a large number. A final total of seven > > Sandwich Terns was a maximum count for the state at the time.” > > > > > > 1996 Major Hurricane Fran > > > > https://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/atlantic/1996/Major-Hurricane-Fran > > > > morning: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S20370719 > > morning: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S20370663 > > evening: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S20467354 > > next day: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S20467579 > > > > > > 1999 Major Hurricane Floyd > > > > https://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/atlantic/1999/Major-Hurricane-Floyd > > > > https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S24442955 > > https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S27002826 > > > > > > 2006 Hurricane Ernesto > > > > https://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/atlantic/2006/Hurricane-Ernesto > > > > https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S24420867 > > > > > > 2011 Hurricane Irene > > > > https://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/atlantic/2011/Hurricane-Irene > > > > https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S8737686 > > https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S8737724 > > https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S8737900 > > https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S8737940 > > > > > > -- > > > > NYSbirds-L List Info: > > http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm > > http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm > > http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm > > > > ARCHIVES: > > 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html > > 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L > > 3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01 > > > > Please submit your observations to eBird: > > http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ > > > > -- > > > > > -- > > NYSbirds-L List Info: > http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm > http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm > http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm > > ARCHIVES: > 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html > 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L > 3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01 > > Please submit your observations to eBird: > http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ > > -- > > -- > NYSbirds-L List Info: > Welcome and Basics > Rules and Information > Subscribe, Configuration and Leave > Archives: > The Mail Archive > Surfbirds > ABA > Please submit your observations to eBird! > -- -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01 Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
