[nysbirds-l] Central Park NYC - Sat. Mar. 31, 2018 - American Bittern, Ospreys, Pine Warbler, Field, Swamp, and Fox Sparrows

[Deborah Allen]

Central Park NYC
Saturday, March 31, 2018
OBS: Robert DeCandido, PhD, Deborah Allen, m.ob.

Highlights: The American Bittern (record early spring date for Central Park 
(3/30)) continued at Tupelo Field, Ospreys, Pine Warbler, Field, Swamp, and Fox 
Sparrows.

Canada Goose - at least 42 (32 Reservoir, at least 10 on the Lake)
Northern Shoveler -  more than 120 (122 Reservoir, others on the Lake)
Mallard - 25 Reservoir, others on the Lake & Turtle Pond
Bufflehead - 19 or 20 Reservoir
Hooded Merganser - pair Reservoir
Ruddy Duck - 15 Reservoir
Mourning Dove - 8
American Coot - 5 Reservoir
Herring Gull - 1 Reservoir & flyovers
Double-crested Cormorant - 4 Reservoir & flyovers
American Bittern - continued at Tupelo Field in Tupelo since it's discovery 
Friday by Michael Waldron
Great Egret - the Lake (Sandra Critelli & Karen Evans)
Osprey - 2 northbound over Pinetum (Jeffrey Michael Ward)
Bald Eagle - reported flyover at the Tupelo Field by Pat Dubren
Red-tailed Hawk - at least 3 (one perched in Mugger's Woods & multiple flyovers)
Red-bellied Woodpecker several
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - at least 4
Downy Woodpecker - at least 3
Northern Flicker - at least 4
Eastern Phoebe - around 8 (in addition Jeff Ward reported 5 at Tanner's Spring 
early this morning)
Blue Jay - 10 to 15
American Crow - heard several locations
Tufted Titmouse - Swampy Pin Oak/Summer House Meadow in puddle
White-breasted Nuthatch - feeders, heard elsewhere
Brown Creeper - 2  - others reported at the Point (Linda LaBella)
Golden-crowned Kinglet -  20
Hermit Thrush - 4
American Robin - numerous (more than 60 on the Great Lawn alone)
Brown Thrasher - Mugger's Woods
House Finch - smaller numbers at feeders
American Goldfinch - 7 or 8 at the feeders, also at Azalea Pond, the Gill, 
Upper Lobe, etc. 
Eastern Towhee - male Mugger's Woods
Field Sparrow - 2 (Pinetum & Summer House Meadow - Deb)
Fox Sparrow - 15
Song Sparrow - at least 40
Swamp Sparrow - 5 (1 Pinetum, 3 Gill Overlook (David Barrett), 1 Upper Lobe 
(Jeff Ward))
White-throated Sparrow - still common
Dark-eyed Junco - around 80
Red-winged Blackbird - 10
Common Grackle - scattered around
Pine Warbler - male (seen at the Oven early by Bob, refound at the feeders 
later (thanks Brad Kane))
Northern Cardinal - many singing

Deb Allen

Follow us on twitter @BirdingBobNYC & @DAllenNYC (Manhattan #birdcp, Bronx 
#birdbx)

--

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Please submit your observations to eBird:
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--

[nysbirds-l] Central Park NYC - Sat. Mar. 31, 2018 - American Bittern, Ospreys, Pine Warbler, Field, Swamp, and Fox Sparrows

[Deborah Allen]

Central Park NYC
Saturday, March 31, 2018
OBS: Robert DeCandido, PhD, Deborah Allen, m.ob.

Highlights: The American Bittern (record early spring date for Central Park 
(3/30)) continued at Tupelo Field, Ospreys, Pine Warbler, Field, Swamp, and Fox 
Sparrows.

Canada Goose - at least 42 (32 Reservoir, at least 10 on the Lake)
Northern Shoveler -  more than 120 (122 Reservoir, others on the Lake)
Mallard - 25 Reservoir, others on the Lake & Turtle Pond
Bufflehead - 19 or 20 Reservoir
Hooded Merganser - pair Reservoir
Ruddy Duck - 15 Reservoir
Mourning Dove - 8
American Coot - 5 Reservoir
Herring Gull - 1 Reservoir & flyovers
Double-crested Cormorant - 4 Reservoir & flyovers
American Bittern - continued at Tupelo Field in Tupelo since it's discovery 
Friday by Michael Waldron
Great Egret - the Lake (Sandra Critelli & Karen Evans)
Osprey - 2 northbound over Pinetum (Jeffrey Michael Ward)
Bald Eagle - reported flyover at the Tupelo Field by Pat Dubren
Red-tailed Hawk - at least 3 (one perched in Mugger's Woods & multiple flyovers)
Red-bellied Woodpecker several
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - at least 4
Downy Woodpecker - at least 3
Northern Flicker - at least 4
Eastern Phoebe - around 8 (in addition Jeff Ward reported 5 at Tanner's Spring 
early this morning)
Blue Jay - 10 to 15
American Crow - heard several locations
Tufted Titmouse - Swampy Pin Oak/Summer House Meadow in puddle
White-breasted Nuthatch - feeders, heard elsewhere
Brown Creeper - 2  - others reported at the Point (Linda LaBella)
Golden-crowned Kinglet -  20
Hermit Thrush - 4
American Robin - numerous (more than 60 on the Great Lawn alone)
Brown Thrasher - Mugger's Woods
House Finch - smaller numbers at feeders
American Goldfinch - 7 or 8 at the feeders, also at Azalea Pond, the Gill, 
Upper Lobe, etc. 
Eastern Towhee - male Mugger's Woods
Field Sparrow - 2 (Pinetum & Summer House Meadow - Deb)
Fox Sparrow - 15
Song Sparrow - at least 40
Swamp Sparrow - 5 (1 Pinetum, 3 Gill Overlook (David Barrett), 1 Upper Lobe 
(Jeff Ward))
White-throated Sparrow - still common
Dark-eyed Junco - around 80
Red-winged Blackbird - 10
Common Grackle - scattered around
Pine Warbler - male (seen at the Oven early by Bob, refound at the feeders 
later (thanks Brad Kane))
Northern Cardinal - many singing

Deb Allen

Follow us on twitter @BirdingBobNYC & @DAllenNYC (Manhattan #birdcp, Bronx 
#birdbx)

--

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2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L
3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01

Please submit your observations to eBird:
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--

[nysbirds-l] Black-headed Gull - Staten Island

[Jose Ramirez-Garofalo]

I found a black-headed Gull at Wolfe’s Pond Park on Staten Island about an
hour ago- Seth Wollney and Anthony C. got desent pics.

Cheers,

Jose
-- 
José Ramírez-Garofalo

Research Assistant
College of Staten Island

--

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Please submit your observations to eBird:
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--

[nysbirds-l] Black-headed Gull - Staten Island

[Jose Ramirez-Garofalo]

I found a black-headed Gull at Wolfe’s Pond Park on Staten Island about an
hour ago- Seth Wollney and Anthony C. got desent pics.

Cheers,

Jose
-- 
José Ramírez-Garofalo

Research Assistant
College of Staten Island

--

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2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L
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Please submit your observations to eBird:
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--

[nysbirds-l] South shore - Suffolk + EPCAL

[leormand]

Dune road was quiet - no sign of owls or harriers. Shinnecock bay held some 
oyster catchers, brant, long-tailed ducks, black scorers and common eiders and 
the occasional loon. 

Along the roadside ditches were a large number of great egrets. 

I visited EPCAL briefly and barely got out of the car. Grey ghost was present 
and there were a good number of kestrels. 

The mouth of Carmans river had 7 osprey in view at one point. A pair of 
shovelers was s nice surprise - no sign of bald eagle. 

- Luke 
--

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3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01

Please submit your observations to eBird:
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--

[nysbirds-l] South shore - Suffolk + EPCAL

[leormand]

Dune road was quiet - no sign of owls or harriers. Shinnecock bay held some 
oyster catchers, brant, long-tailed ducks, black scorers and common eiders and 
the occasional loon. 

Along the roadside ditches were a large number of great egrets. 

I visited EPCAL briefly and barely got out of the car. Grey ghost was present 
and there were a good number of kestrels. 

The mouth of Carmans river had 7 osprey in view at one point. A pair of 
shovelers was s nice surprise - no sign of bald eagle. 

- Luke 
--

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ARCHIVES:
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2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L
3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01

Please submit your observations to eBird:
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--

[nysbirds-l] New Hawk Flyway Discovery

[Steve Walter]

I think that subject line is more interesting than the usual. Well, the
flyway is not really new. I'm sure birds have been there before. And I can't
say the discovery is out of the blue. About 20 years ago, one day (an April
19, as I recall), I detected a small hawk flight (about 70 birds of various
species) along Little Neck Bay in northeastern Queens. I decided that this
year I would finally put some time into seeing if there's something viable
here. The spot I chose is a mile or so south of where I observed that time -
by Alley Pond Environmental Center, but on the north side of Northern Blvd.
Wide open skies for viewing here.  And for today, at least, the results were
intriguing and not bad.  

 

I started at 11:00. Now I wish I had started earlier. But going in, it
seemed a preposterous idea to plan a day around spring hawk watching in
Queens. And with a forecast for winds to lighten in mid-day, it didn't
profile as an ideal hawk migration day. Well anyway, 15 minutes into it, a
group of 23 Turkey Vultures came streaming by high. This already was more
TV's than I'd ever seen in one day on Long Island. A few minutes later, it
was a group of 31. This went on for about another hour, with a final tally
of 186 Turkey Vultures (don't laugh Braddock Bay and Derby Hill - that's big
stuff here). The surprising thing is that most were heading east, except for
one group of 13 that were seen going north on the west side of Little Neck
Bay). Looking at a map leads one to think that a north or northeast heading
would allow for a short water crossing before Long Island Sound widens, and
could actually provide somewhat of a concentration point toward the
mainland. This may prove true yet, particularly for other species. The
single Harrier today and a couple of Ospreys went that way. I'm not sure
where the two Kestrels went or if the Cooper's Hawk was not a local. An
adult Bald Eagle flew the wrong way over Little Neck Bay, so probably a
local (still sounds strange to say that in Queens).

 

The spot I chose is in a meadow and by Alley Creek and Little Neck Bay. So
this provided some other birds to be enjoyed while waiting for hawks.
Notable for here or late March were copulating Killdeer, Great Egret, Barn
Swallow, Palm Warbler, Eastern Meadowlark, and a number of Boat-tailed
Grackles. The most interesting bird was one that flew low past me, giving a
call I didn't recognize. When I got on it flying away, I saw large wing
patches and red emanating from the head. I suppose that could be a Eurasian
Goldfinch.

 

So not a bad start. Looking forward to tomorrow. A better wind in the
forecast, and hopefully we don't get socked in with clouds too long.

 

Steve Walter

Bayside, NY


--

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3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01

Please submit your observations to eBird:
http://ebird.org/content/ebird/

--

[nysbirds-l] New Hawk Flyway Discovery

[Steve Walter]

I think that subject line is more interesting than the usual. Well, the
flyway is not really new. I'm sure birds have been there before. And I can't
say the discovery is out of the blue. About 20 years ago, one day (an April
19, as I recall), I detected a small hawk flight (about 70 birds of various
species) along Little Neck Bay in northeastern Queens. I decided that this
year I would finally put some time into seeing if there's something viable
here. The spot I chose is a mile or so south of where I observed that time -
by Alley Pond Environmental Center, but on the north side of Northern Blvd.
Wide open skies for viewing here.  And for today, at least, the results were
intriguing and not bad.  

 

I started at 11:00. Now I wish I had started earlier. But going in, it
seemed a preposterous idea to plan a day around spring hawk watching in
Queens. And with a forecast for winds to lighten in mid-day, it didn't
profile as an ideal hawk migration day. Well anyway, 15 minutes into it, a
group of 23 Turkey Vultures came streaming by high. This already was more
TV's than I'd ever seen in one day on Long Island. A few minutes later, it
was a group of 31. This went on for about another hour, with a final tally
of 186 Turkey Vultures (don't laugh Braddock Bay and Derby Hill - that's big
stuff here). The surprising thing is that most were heading east, except for
one group of 13 that were seen going north on the west side of Little Neck
Bay). Looking at a map leads one to think that a north or northeast heading
would allow for a short water crossing before Long Island Sound widens, and
could actually provide somewhat of a concentration point toward the
mainland. This may prove true yet, particularly for other species. The
single Harrier today and a couple of Ospreys went that way. I'm not sure
where the two Kestrels went or if the Cooper's Hawk was not a local. An
adult Bald Eagle flew the wrong way over Little Neck Bay, so probably a
local (still sounds strange to say that in Queens).

 

The spot I chose is in a meadow and by Alley Creek and Little Neck Bay. So
this provided some other birds to be enjoyed while waiting for hawks.
Notable for here or late March were copulating Killdeer, Great Egret, Barn
Swallow, Palm Warbler, Eastern Meadowlark, and a number of Boat-tailed
Grackles. The most interesting bird was one that flew low past me, giving a
call I didn't recognize. When I got on it flying away, I saw large wing
patches and red emanating from the head. I suppose that could be a Eurasian
Goldfinch.

 

So not a bad start. Looking forward to tomorrow. A better wind in the
forecast, and hopefully we don't get socked in with clouds too long.

 

Steve Walter

Bayside, NY


--

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http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm
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2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L
3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01

Please submit your observations to eBird:
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--

Re: [nysbirds-l] Real-time bird alerts for Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens

[Nancy Shamban]

David and Gus,  you are great!  

Sent from my iPhone

> On Mar 31, 2018, at 4:24 PM, brian.whip...@gmail.com wrote:
> 
> tl;dr
> 
>> On Sat, Mar 31, 2018 at 12:29 PM Gus Keri  wrote:
>> Hi everyone,
>>  
>> [Note: this email is not personal against Sean or Joshua who are some of the 
>> nicest people I have met along my birding adventure]
>>  
>> Three weeks ago, I deleted all my social media birding-related accounts 
>> (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Flicker) and sworn not to go back 
>> again. I kept this emailing list subscription for rare birds alert because I 
>> still love birding. But I will make an exception today and write this email 
>> in support of David. Somehow, I feel responsible for what is going on 
>> between him and what I call the Secret Society of Brooklyn Elite Birders 
>> (SSBEB). [More on this society below.]
>>  
>> Let me first start by saying that David’s Twitter account, Brooklyn bird 
>> Alert, is the best thing happened for Brooklyn birders in a long time. I am 
>> saying this as a Brooklyn birder and speaking on behave of many Brooklyn 
>> birders who are in support of  David’s work but too afraid to speak out.
>>  
>> David is doing a great job in surfing the net (eBird, Twitter accounts, 
>> email Lists, etc.) in search of the best information to provide to birders 
>> all over the city. He is working hard and his effort is well appreciated by 
>> the majority of birders. I applaud him and I Hope he will continue his work 
>> undeterred by few criticisms.
>>  
>> I feel responsible for all this because I am the one who asked David to 
>> start this account. I had been following Manhattan Bird Alert for years and 
>> I liked it very much. When David created Bronx Bird Alert, I begged him to 
>> start one for Brooklyn. Initially, he hesitated because he doesn’t want to 
>> upset Brooklyn birders.
>>  
>> I conducted few discussions with Brooklyn birders and found that the opinion 
>> is split among the elite birders but the majority of the regular (non-elite) 
>> birders were in support of it. After further discussion, David agreed to 
>> start the account.
>>  
>> It wasn’t long before the account became very popular. Almost more than 90% 
>> of the Brooklyn birders I know followed it and some of them started using 
>> the hashtag #birdbk. I was happy. And many birders benefited from this 
>> account. They saw birds that they wouldn’t have heard about if it wasn’t for 
>> David.
>>  
>> At the same time, I noticed that few birders didn’t follow this account. I 
>> had some bad experience with some of them. (Some of them might have hatred 
>> against me since the infamous injured Snowy Owl I tweeted about last 
>> November) But I thought, they will eventually come to their senses and 
>> recognize that this account is good for all Brooklyn birder.
>>  
>> I was wrong.
>>  
>> One month ago, A friend birder (I am not going to mention his name) told me 
>> that there had been a discussion taking place about my involvement with this 
>> account and some believe that I am the one who is doing all the work. And 
>> some birders don’t want to help this account because of me. I told him the 
>> account is owned and managed completely by David and he does all the work. I 
>> have nothing to do with it except that it was my idea.
>>  
>> I was shocked to hear that. I couldn’t believe such level of personal hatred 
>> even existed. I knew about this SSBEB for a long time but I never though 
>> they will descend to this level. I knew they have monopoly over every thing 
>> birding in Brooklyn and they don’t like any dissent. They bully the rest of 
>> Brooklyn birders into silence.
>>  
>> Those who know me well also know that I don’t keep quite when I see 
>> something wrong. I express my opinion freely. Some of you might remember the 
>> Facebook posts about birding ethics I posted a couple of months ago. 
>> Apparently, these posts didn’t go well with the Junta, which is the SSBEB, 
>> in the banana republic, that is Brooklyn, and I have always thought I was in 
>> America, the land of the free.
>>  
>> One week after that encounter with the friend birder, I knew something is 
>> brewing. I received an email from another friend birder; also he will remain 
>> unnamed, addressing me in a very formal way. We had exchanged many friendly 
>> emails in the past year. He is one of the nicest people you will ever meet. 
>> I knew then that whatever discussion taking place behind a closed door had 
>> gotten to him also. Apparently, the SSBEB is exerting pressure on the whole 
>> birding community.
>>  
>> What happened two days later was the straw that broke the camel’s back and I 
>> decided to exit Brooklyn birding community altogether.
>>  
>> David tweeted about a Snowy Owl in Floyd Bennett Field which is 10 minutes 
>> away from where I live. I immediately got in my car and drove there. The owl 
>> was still there. I love Snowy Owl. I know many birders 

Re: [nysbirds-l] Real-time bird alerts for Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens

[Nancy Shamban]

David and Gus,  you are great!  

Sent from my iPhone

> On Mar 31, 2018, at 4:24 PM, brian.whip...@gmail.com wrote:
> 
> tl;dr
> 
>> On Sat, Mar 31, 2018 at 12:29 PM Gus Keri  wrote:
>> Hi everyone,
>>  
>> [Note: this email is not personal against Sean or Joshua who are some of the 
>> nicest people I have met along my birding adventure]
>>  
>> Three weeks ago, I deleted all my social media birding-related accounts 
>> (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Flicker) and sworn not to go back 
>> again. I kept this emailing list subscription for rare birds alert because I 
>> still love birding. But I will make an exception today and write this email 
>> in support of David. Somehow, I feel responsible for what is going on 
>> between him and what I call the Secret Society of Brooklyn Elite Birders 
>> (SSBEB). [More on this society below.]
>>  
>> Let me first start by saying that David’s Twitter account, Brooklyn bird 
>> Alert, is the best thing happened for Brooklyn birders in a long time. I am 
>> saying this as a Brooklyn birder and speaking on behave of many Brooklyn 
>> birders who are in support of  David’s work but too afraid to speak out.
>>  
>> David is doing a great job in surfing the net (eBird, Twitter accounts, 
>> email Lists, etc.) in search of the best information to provide to birders 
>> all over the city. He is working hard and his effort is well appreciated by 
>> the majority of birders. I applaud him and I Hope he will continue his work 
>> undeterred by few criticisms.
>>  
>> I feel responsible for all this because I am the one who asked David to 
>> start this account. I had been following Manhattan Bird Alert for years and 
>> I liked it very much. When David created Bronx Bird Alert, I begged him to 
>> start one for Brooklyn. Initially, he hesitated because he doesn’t want to 
>> upset Brooklyn birders.
>>  
>> I conducted few discussions with Brooklyn birders and found that the opinion 
>> is split among the elite birders but the majority of the regular (non-elite) 
>> birders were in support of it. After further discussion, David agreed to 
>> start the account.
>>  
>> It wasn’t long before the account became very popular. Almost more than 90% 
>> of the Brooklyn birders I know followed it and some of them started using 
>> the hashtag #birdbk. I was happy. And many birders benefited from this 
>> account. They saw birds that they wouldn’t have heard about if it wasn’t for 
>> David.
>>  
>> At the same time, I noticed that few birders didn’t follow this account. I 
>> had some bad experience with some of them. (Some of them might have hatred 
>> against me since the infamous injured Snowy Owl I tweeted about last 
>> November) But I thought, they will eventually come to their senses and 
>> recognize that this account is good for all Brooklyn birder.
>>  
>> I was wrong.
>>  
>> One month ago, A friend birder (I am not going to mention his name) told me 
>> that there had been a discussion taking place about my involvement with this 
>> account and some believe that I am the one who is doing all the work. And 
>> some birders don’t want to help this account because of me. I told him the 
>> account is owned and managed completely by David and he does all the work. I 
>> have nothing to do with it except that it was my idea.
>>  
>> I was shocked to hear that. I couldn’t believe such level of personal hatred 
>> even existed. I knew about this SSBEB for a long time but I never though 
>> they will descend to this level. I knew they have monopoly over every thing 
>> birding in Brooklyn and they don’t like any dissent. They bully the rest of 
>> Brooklyn birders into silence.
>>  
>> Those who know me well also know that I don’t keep quite when I see 
>> something wrong. I express my opinion freely. Some of you might remember the 
>> Facebook posts about birding ethics I posted a couple of months ago. 
>> Apparently, these posts didn’t go well with the Junta, which is the SSBEB, 
>> in the banana republic, that is Brooklyn, and I have always thought I was in 
>> America, the land of the free.
>>  
>> One week after that encounter with the friend birder, I knew something is 
>> brewing. I received an email from another friend birder; also he will remain 
>> unnamed, addressing me in a very formal way. We had exchanged many friendly 
>> emails in the past year. He is one of the nicest people you will ever meet. 
>> I knew then that whatever discussion taking place behind a closed door had 
>> gotten to him also. Apparently, the SSBEB is exerting pressure on the whole 
>> birding community.
>>  
>> What happened two days later was the straw that broke the camel’s back and I 
>> decided to exit Brooklyn birding community altogether.
>>  
>> David tweeted about a Snowy Owl in Floyd Bennett Field which is 10 minutes 
>> away from where I live. I immediately got in my car and drove there. The owl 
>> was still there. I love Snowy Owl. I know many birders also love them and 

Re: [nysbirds-l] Real-time bird alerts for Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens

[brian . whipple]

tl;dr

On Sat, Mar 31, 2018 at 12:29 PM Gus Keri  wrote:

> Hi everyone,
>
>
>
> [Note: this email is not personal against Sean or Joshua who are some of
> the nicest people I have met along my birding adventure]
>
>
>
> Three weeks ago, I deleted all my social media birding-related accounts
> (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Flicker) and sworn not to go
> back again. I kept this emailing list subscription for rare birds alert
> because I still love birding. But I will make an exception today and write
> this email in support of David. Somehow, I feel responsible for what is
> going on between him and what I call the Secret Society of Brooklyn Elite
> Birders (SSBEB). [More on this society below.]
>
>
>
> Let me first start by saying that David’s Twitter account, Brooklyn bird
> Alert, is the best thing happened for Brooklyn birders in a long time. I am
> saying this as a Brooklyn birder and speaking on behave of many Brooklyn
> birders who are in support of  David’s work but too afraid to speak out.
>
>
>
> David is doing a great job in surfing the net (eBird, Twitter accounts,
> email Lists, etc.) in search of the best information to provide to birders
> all over the city. He is working hard and his effort is well appreciated by
> the majority of birders. I applaud him and I Hope he will continue his work
> undeterred by few criticisms.
>
>
>
> I feel responsible for all this because I am the one who asked David to
> start this account. I had been following Manhattan Bird Alert for years and
> I liked it very much. When David created Bronx Bird Alert, I begged him to
> start one for Brooklyn. Initially, he hesitated because he doesn’t want to
> upset Brooklyn birders.
>
>
>
> I conducted few discussions with Brooklyn birders and found that the
> opinion is split among the elite birders but the majority of the regular
> (non-elite) birders were in support of it. After further discussion, David
> agreed to start the account.
>
>
>
> It wasn’t long before the account became very popular. Almost more than
> 90% of the Brooklyn birders I know followed it and some of them started
> using the hashtag #birdbk. I was happy. And many birders benefited from
> this account. They saw birds that they wouldn’t have heard about if it
> wasn’t for David.
>
>
>
> At the same time, I noticed that few birders didn’t follow this account. I
> had some bad experience with some of them. (Some of them might have hatred
> against me since the infamous injured Snowy Owl I tweeted about last
> November) But I thought, they will eventually come to their senses and
> recognize that this account is good for all Brooklyn birder.
>
>
>
> I was wrong.
>
>
>
> One month ago, A friend birder (I am not going to mention his name) told
> me that there had been a discussion taking place about my involvement with
> this account and some believe that I am the one who is doing all the work.
> And some birders don’t want to help this account because of me. I told him
> the account is owned and managed completely by David and he does all the
> work. I have nothing to do with it except that it was my idea.
>
>
>
> I was shocked to hear that. I couldn’t believe such level of personal
> hatred even existed. I knew about this SSBEB for a long time but I never
> though they will descend to this level. I knew they have monopoly over
> every thing birding in Brooklyn and they don’t like any dissent. They bully
> the rest of Brooklyn birders into silence.
>
>
>
> Those who know me well also know that I don’t keep quite when I see
> something wrong. I express my opinion freely. Some of you might remember
> the Facebook posts about birding ethics I posted a couple of months ago.
> Apparently, these posts didn’t go well with the Junta, which is the SSBEB,
> in the banana republic, that is Brooklyn, and I have always thought I was
> in America, the land of the free.
>
>
>
> One week after that encounter with the friend birder, I knew something is
> brewing. I received an email from another friend birder; also he will
> remain unnamed, addressing me in a very formal way. We had exchanged many
> friendly emails in the past year. He is one of the nicest people you will
> ever meet. I knew then that whatever discussion taking place behind a
> closed door had gotten to him also. Apparently, the SSBEB is exerting
> pressure on the whole birding community.
>
>
>
> What happened two days later was the straw that broke the camel’s back and
> I decided to exit Brooklyn birding community altogether.
>
>
>
> David tweeted about a Snowy Owl in Floyd Bennett Field which is 10 minutes
> away from where I live. I immediately got in my car and drove there. The
> owl was still there. I love Snowy Owl. I know many birders also love them
> and they enjoy looking at them.
>
>
>
> I believe God send Snowy Owls to NYC every winter, especially the coldest
> ones, so people can take a break from their miserable busy lives and enjoy
> the beauty of this 

Re: [nysbirds-l] Real-time bird alerts for Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens

[brian . whipple]

tl;dr

On Sat, Mar 31, 2018 at 12:29 PM Gus Keri  wrote:

> Hi everyone,
>
>
>
> [Note: this email is not personal against Sean or Joshua who are some of
> the nicest people I have met along my birding adventure]
>
>
>
> Three weeks ago, I deleted all my social media birding-related accounts
> (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Flicker) and sworn not to go
> back again. I kept this emailing list subscription for rare birds alert
> because I still love birding. But I will make an exception today and write
> this email in support of David. Somehow, I feel responsible for what is
> going on between him and what I call the Secret Society of Brooklyn Elite
> Birders (SSBEB). [More on this society below.]
>
>
>
> Let me first start by saying that David’s Twitter account, Brooklyn bird
> Alert, is the best thing happened for Brooklyn birders in a long time. I am
> saying this as a Brooklyn birder and speaking on behave of many Brooklyn
> birders who are in support of  David’s work but too afraid to speak out.
>
>
>
> David is doing a great job in surfing the net (eBird, Twitter accounts,
> email Lists, etc.) in search of the best information to provide to birders
> all over the city. He is working hard and his effort is well appreciated by
> the majority of birders. I applaud him and I Hope he will continue his work
> undeterred by few criticisms.
>
>
>
> I feel responsible for all this because I am the one who asked David to
> start this account. I had been following Manhattan Bird Alert for years and
> I liked it very much. When David created Bronx Bird Alert, I begged him to
> start one for Brooklyn. Initially, he hesitated because he doesn’t want to
> upset Brooklyn birders.
>
>
>
> I conducted few discussions with Brooklyn birders and found that the
> opinion is split among the elite birders but the majority of the regular
> (non-elite) birders were in support of it. After further discussion, David
> agreed to start the account.
>
>
>
> It wasn’t long before the account became very popular. Almost more than
> 90% of the Brooklyn birders I know followed it and some of them started
> using the hashtag #birdbk. I was happy. And many birders benefited from
> this account. They saw birds that they wouldn’t have heard about if it
> wasn’t for David.
>
>
>
> At the same time, I noticed that few birders didn’t follow this account. I
> had some bad experience with some of them. (Some of them might have hatred
> against me since the infamous injured Snowy Owl I tweeted about last
> November) But I thought, they will eventually come to their senses and
> recognize that this account is good for all Brooklyn birder.
>
>
>
> I was wrong.
>
>
>
> One month ago, A friend birder (I am not going to mention his name) told
> me that there had been a discussion taking place about my involvement with
> this account and some believe that I am the one who is doing all the work.
> And some birders don’t want to help this account because of me. I told him
> the account is owned and managed completely by David and he does all the
> work. I have nothing to do with it except that it was my idea.
>
>
>
> I was shocked to hear that. I couldn’t believe such level of personal
> hatred even existed. I knew about this SSBEB for a long time but I never
> though they will descend to this level. I knew they have monopoly over
> every thing birding in Brooklyn and they don’t like any dissent. They bully
> the rest of Brooklyn birders into silence.
>
>
>
> Those who know me well also know that I don’t keep quite when I see
> something wrong. I express my opinion freely. Some of you might remember
> the Facebook posts about birding ethics I posted a couple of months ago.
> Apparently, these posts didn’t go well with the Junta, which is the SSBEB,
> in the banana republic, that is Brooklyn, and I have always thought I was
> in America, the land of the free.
>
>
>
> One week after that encounter with the friend birder, I knew something is
> brewing. I received an email from another friend birder; also he will
> remain unnamed, addressing me in a very formal way. We had exchanged many
> friendly emails in the past year. He is one of the nicest people you will
> ever meet. I knew then that whatever discussion taking place behind a
> closed door had gotten to him also. Apparently, the SSBEB is exerting
> pressure on the whole birding community.
>
>
>
> What happened two days later was the straw that broke the camel’s back and
> I decided to exit Brooklyn birding community altogether.
>
>
>
> David tweeted about a Snowy Owl in Floyd Bennett Field which is 10 minutes
> away from where I live. I immediately got in my car and drove there. The
> owl was still there. I love Snowy Owl. I know many birders also love them
> and they enjoy looking at them.
>
>
>
> I believe God send Snowy Owls to NYC every winter, especially the coldest
> ones, so people can take a break from their miserable busy lives and enjoy
> the beauty of this majestic bird, even 

Re: [nysbirds-l] Real-time bird alerts for Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens

[Gus Keri]

Hi everyone,

 

[Note: this email is not personal against Sean or Joshua who are some of the 
nicest people I have met along my birding adventure]

 

Three weeks ago, I deleted all my social media birding-related accounts 
(Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Flicker) and sworn not to go back 
again. I kept this emailing list subscription for rare birds alert because I 
still love birding. But I will make an exception today and write this email in 
support of David. Somehow, I feel responsible for what is going on between him 
and what I call the Secret Society of Brooklyn Elite Birders (SSBEB). [More on 
this society below.]

 

Let me first start by saying that David’s Twitter account, Brooklyn bird Alert, 
is the best thing happened for Brooklyn birders in a long time. I am saying 
this as a Brooklyn birder and speaking on behave of many Brooklyn birders who 
are in support of  David’s work but too afraid to speak out.

 

David is doing a great job in surfing the net (eBird, Twitter accounts, email 
Lists, etc.) in search of the best information to provide to birders all over 
the city. He is working hard and his effort is well appreciated by the majority 
of birders. I applaud him and I Hope he will continue his work undeterred by 
few criticisms.

 

I feel responsible for all this because I am the one who asked David to start 
this account. I had been following Manhattan Bird Alert for years and I liked 
it very much. When David created Bronx Bird Alert, I begged him to start one 
for Brooklyn. Initially, he hesitated because he doesn’t want to upset Brooklyn 
birders.

 

I conducted few discussions with Brooklyn birders and found that the opinion is 
split among the elite birders but the majority of the regular (non-elite) 
birders were in support of it. After further discussion, David agreed to start 
the account.

 

It wasn’t long before the account became very popular. Almost more than 90% of 
the Brooklyn birders I know followed it and some of them started using the 
hashtag #birdbk. I was happy. And many birders benefited from this account. 
They saw birds that they wouldn’t have heard about if it wasn’t for David.

 

At the same time, I noticed that few birders didn’t follow this account. I had 
some bad experience with some of them. (Some of them might have hatred against 
me since the infamous injured Snowy Owl I tweeted about last November) But I 
thought, they will eventually come to their senses and recognize that this 
account is good for all Brooklyn birder.

 

I was wrong.

 

One month ago, A friend birder (I am not going to mention his name) told me 
that there had been a discussion taking place about my involvement with this 
account and some believe that I am the one who is doing all the work. And some 
birders don’t want to help this account because of me. I told him the account 
is owned and managed completely by David and he does all the work. I have 
nothing to do with it except that it was my idea.

 

I was shocked to hear that. I couldn’t believe such level of personal hatred 
even existed. I knew about this SSBEB for a long time but I never though they 
will descend to this level. I knew they have monopoly over every thing birding 
in Brooklyn and they don’t like any dissent. They bully the rest of Brooklyn 
birders into silence.

 

Those who know me well also know that I don’t keep quite when I see something 
wrong. I express my opinion freely. Some of you might remember the Facebook 
posts about birding ethics I posted a couple of months ago. Apparently, these 
posts didn’t go well with the Junta, which is the SSBEB, in the banana 
republic, that is Brooklyn, and I have always thought I was in America, the 
land of the free.

 

One week after that encounter with the friend birder, I knew something is 
brewing. I received an email from another friend birder; also he will remain 
unnamed, addressing me in a very formal way. We had exchanged many friendly 
emails in the past year. He is one of the nicest people you will ever meet. I 
knew then that whatever discussion taking place behind a closed door had gotten 
to him also. Apparently, the SSBEB is exerting pressure on the whole birding 
community.

 

What happened two days later was the straw that broke the camel’s back and I 
decided to exit Brooklyn birding community altogether.

 

David tweeted about a Snowy Owl in Floyd Bennett Field which is 10 minutes away 
from where I live. I immediately got in my car and drove there. The owl was 
still there. I love Snowy Owl. I know many birders also love them and they 
enjoy looking at them.

 

I believe God send Snowy Owls to NYC every winter, especially the coldest ones, 
so people can take a break from their miserable busy lives and enjoy the beauty 
of this majestic bird, even if it is only for minutes. I believe every New 
Yorker has the right to look at one of them every winter.

 

I immediately took photos and videos and posted them on social media 

Re: [nysbirds-l] Real-time bird alerts for Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens

[Gus Keri]

Hi everyone,

 

[Note: this email is not personal against Sean or Joshua who are some of the 
nicest people I have met along my birding adventure]

 

Three weeks ago, I deleted all my social media birding-related accounts 
(Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Flicker) and sworn not to go back 
again. I kept this emailing list subscription for rare birds alert because I 
still love birding. But I will make an exception today and write this email in 
support of David. Somehow, I feel responsible for what is going on between him 
and what I call the Secret Society of Brooklyn Elite Birders (SSBEB). [More on 
this society below.]

 

Let me first start by saying that David’s Twitter account, Brooklyn bird Alert, 
is the best thing happened for Brooklyn birders in a long time. I am saying 
this as a Brooklyn birder and speaking on behave of many Brooklyn birders who 
are in support of  David’s work but too afraid to speak out.

 

David is doing a great job in surfing the net (eBird, Twitter accounts, email 
Lists, etc.) in search of the best information to provide to birders all over 
the city. He is working hard and his effort is well appreciated by the majority 
of birders. I applaud him and I Hope he will continue his work undeterred by 
few criticisms.

 

I feel responsible for all this because I am the one who asked David to start 
this account. I had been following Manhattan Bird Alert for years and I liked 
it very much. When David created Bronx Bird Alert, I begged him to start one 
for Brooklyn. Initially, he hesitated because he doesn’t want to upset Brooklyn 
birders.

 

I conducted few discussions with Brooklyn birders and found that the opinion is 
split among the elite birders but the majority of the regular (non-elite) 
birders were in support of it. After further discussion, David agreed to start 
the account.

 

It wasn’t long before the account became very popular. Almost more than 90% of 
the Brooklyn birders I know followed it and some of them started using the 
hashtag #birdbk. I was happy. And many birders benefited from this account. 
They saw birds that they wouldn’t have heard about if it wasn’t for David.

 

At the same time, I noticed that few birders didn’t follow this account. I had 
some bad experience with some of them. (Some of them might have hatred against 
me since the infamous injured Snowy Owl I tweeted about last November) But I 
thought, they will eventually come to their senses and recognize that this 
account is good for all Brooklyn birder.

 

I was wrong.

 

One month ago, A friend birder (I am not going to mention his name) told me 
that there had been a discussion taking place about my involvement with this 
account and some believe that I am the one who is doing all the work. And some 
birders don’t want to help this account because of me. I told him the account 
is owned and managed completely by David and he does all the work. I have 
nothing to do with it except that it was my idea.

 

I was shocked to hear that. I couldn’t believe such level of personal hatred 
even existed. I knew about this SSBEB for a long time but I never though they 
will descend to this level. I knew they have monopoly over every thing birding 
in Brooklyn and they don’t like any dissent. They bully the rest of Brooklyn 
birders into silence.

 

Those who know me well also know that I don’t keep quite when I see something 
wrong. I express my opinion freely. Some of you might remember the Facebook 
posts about birding ethics I posted a couple of months ago. Apparently, these 
posts didn’t go well with the Junta, which is the SSBEB, in the banana 
republic, that is Brooklyn, and I have always thought I was in America, the 
land of the free.

 

One week after that encounter with the friend birder, I knew something is 
brewing. I received an email from another friend birder; also he will remain 
unnamed, addressing me in a very formal way. We had exchanged many friendly 
emails in the past year. He is one of the nicest people you will ever meet. I 
knew then that whatever discussion taking place behind a closed door had gotten 
to him also. Apparently, the SSBEB is exerting pressure on the whole birding 
community.

 

What happened two days later was the straw that broke the camel’s back and I 
decided to exit Brooklyn birding community altogether.

 

David tweeted about a Snowy Owl in Floyd Bennett Field which is 10 minutes away 
from where I live. I immediately got in my car and drove there. The owl was 
still there. I love Snowy Owl. I know many birders also love them and they 
enjoy looking at them.

 

I believe God send Snowy Owls to NYC every winter, especially the coldest ones, 
so people can take a break from their miserable busy lives and enjoy the beauty 
of this majestic bird, even if it is only for minutes. I believe every New 
Yorker has the right to look at one of them every winter.

 

I immediately took photos and videos and posted them on social media 

[nysbirds-l] Staten Island Little Gull

[Jose Ramirez-Garofalo]

The bird flew out over the Bay and did not return in the hour(ish) that I
remained on site, scanning-


-- 
José Ramírez-Garofalo

Research Assistant
College of Staten Island

--

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/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/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] Staten Island Little Gull

[Jose Ramirez-Garofalo]

The bird flew out over the Bay and did not return in the hour(ish) that I
remained on site, scanning-


-- 
José Ramírez-Garofalo

Research Assistant
College of Staten Island

--

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/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/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] Fwd: [SINaturaList] Little gull at Wolfe’s

[Andrew Baksh]

For folks interested, see below.


"I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule of 
others, rather than to be false, and to incur my own abhorrence." ~ Frederick 
Douglass

風　Swift as the wind
林　Quiet as the forest
火　Conquer like the fire
山　Steady as the mountain
Sun Tzu  The Art of War

> (\__/)
> (= '.'=)
> (") _ (") 
> Sent from somewhere in the field using my mobile device! 

Andrew Baksh
www.birdingdude.blogspot.com

Begin forwarded message:

> From: "Seth Wollney seth.woll...@yahoo.com [SINaturaList]" 
> 
> Date: March 31, 2018 at 9:50:18 AM EDT
> To: sinatural...@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [SINaturaList] Little gull at Wolfe’s
> Reply-To: sinatural...@yahoogroups.com
> 
> Little gull at Wolfe's Pond sitting on sand bar with bonaparte's gulls.
> 
> Flock has been moving around since i first saw them. Might have to look on 
> beach
> 
> Sent from my iPhone
> __._,_.___
> Posted by: Seth Wollney 
> Reply via web post•   Reply to sender •   Reply to group  •   
> Start a New Topic   •   Messages in this topic (1)
> 
> Have you tried the highest rated email app?
> With 4.5 stars in iTunes, the Yahoo Mail app is the highest rated email app 
> on the market. What are you waiting for? Now you can access all your inboxes 
> (Gmail, Outlook, AOL and more) in one place. Never delete an email again with 
> 1000GB of free cloud storage.
>  
> Visit BirdingOnStatenIsland.com for information about where and when to go 
> birding on Staten Island!
> VISIT YOUR GROUP
> • Privacy • Unsubscribe • Terms of Use 
> .
>  
> 
> __,_._,___

--

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/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/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] Fwd: [SINaturaList] Little gull at Wolfe’s

[Andrew Baksh]

For folks interested, see below.


"I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule of 
others, rather than to be false, and to incur my own abhorrence." ~ Frederick 
Douglass

風　Swift as the wind
林　Quiet as the forest
火　Conquer like the fire
山　Steady as the mountain
Sun Tzu  The Art of War

> (\__/)
> (= '.'=)
> (") _ (") 
> Sent from somewhere in the field using my mobile device! 

Andrew Baksh
www.birdingdude.blogspot.com

Begin forwarded message:

> From: "Seth Wollney seth.woll...@yahoo.com [SINaturaList]" 
> 
> Date: March 31, 2018 at 9:50:18 AM EDT
> To: sinatural...@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [SINaturaList] Little gull at Wolfe’s
> Reply-To: sinatural...@yahoogroups.com
> 
> Little gull at Wolfe's Pond sitting on sand bar with bonaparte's gulls.
> 
> Flock has been moving around since i first saw them. Might have to look on 
> beach
> 
> Sent from my iPhone
> __._,_.___
> Posted by: Seth Wollney 
> Reply via web post•   Reply to sender •   Reply to group  •   
> Start a New Topic   •   Messages in this topic (1)
> 
> Have you tried the highest rated email app?
> With 4.5 stars in iTunes, the Yahoo Mail app is the highest rated email app 
> on the market. What are you waiting for? Now you can access all your inboxes 
> (Gmail, Outlook, AOL and more) in one place. Never delete an email again with 
> 1000GB of free cloud storage.
>  
> Visit BirdingOnStatenIsland.com for information about where and when to go 
> birding on Staten Island!
> VISIT YOUR GROUP
> • Privacy • Unsubscribe • Terms of Use 
> .
>  
> 
> __,_._,___

--

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/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/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/

--

Re: [nysbirds-l] Real-time bird alerts for Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens

[Larry Trachtenberg]

Even though “the world is turning and you can’t slow down,” I have chosen never 
to have tweeted, retweeted, used instagram, Ingraham, facebook, linked in or 
willingly participate in any form of social media.  Getting old is not so bad 
considering where the world is going even if you miss a bird “here, there and 
everywhere”, as reportage of bird sightings migrates to sources one may choose 
not to use.  It seems to me though not knowing any of the participants to this 
debate; isn’t the whole point of the social media thing once it’s out there 
it’s out there for better or perhaps more often for worse and if you choose to 
give the the new robber barons like Zuckerberg your personal info, well  
and if you choose to follow what Kim Kardashian eats, well; and if you tweet 
the identity and location of a bird, well 

Seems this newest bird community feud is merely a redux of the photographer v. 
birder antagonisms not to mention the debate regarding the absurd -unethical 
many would say - use of incessant play back by some charging $ to lead bird 
walks so their customers can get better photographs — all issues that hopefully 
won’t Trump reports of actual bird sightings as migration gets in to full 
swing.  Happy birding.

As for birds, I did see a meadowlark at Croton Point today.

L. Trachtenberg
Ossining, NY.

P.s. “Can’t we all just get along” — kidding 

Sent from my iPhone

On Mar 30, 2018, at 8:37 PM, Sean Sime 
> wrote:

There has been much discussion off-list regarding the Twitter alert systems you 
have set up and the many unknowns I'm hoping you may be able to shed some light 
on to the list and therefore I'm replying here.
We all agree there can be great benefit to information sharing via social 
media. Yet there are many who are concerned regarding your practice of posting 
sensitive species locations, currently daytime roosting owls, but given line #4 
in your post, "There are no restricted species" it would imply nesting species 
as we move into season as well.

While many people in Kings County were eager to give the birdbk hashtag a try 
it quickly seemed to push the limits of our local birding community's ethics in 
this regard. This post is in no way an attempt to have a discussion regarding 
what level of intrusion on bird life is appropriate. While most of us follow 
the ABA Code of Ethics or follow similar guidelines via local organizations or 
eBird it is easy to understand different people have different opinions on the 
matter.

What I am wondering and I'm hoping you will shed some light on is the apparent 
harvesting of data outside of the purview of people who are using the hashtag, 
whether from eBird, local text alerts or what have you. What seems particularly 
troubling is that multiple people have specifically DM'd you and asked that you 
do not use their tweets and you continue to retweet them anyway, although 
apparently stripping their names from your posting.

Given the current events, it seems appropriate people should have a full 
understanding of how their data is being gathered, stored and used.

While reasonable people may disagree on what is ethical birding or not I see 
less room for different interpretations when it comes to ignoring a member of 
the birding community's direct request to have you not use their data. As one 
human being to another this seems to be completely lacking in civility. I hope 
you will take the time to respond to these concerns to the list as they are 
shared by many people in the NYC birding community.

Kind regards,

Sean Sime
Brooklyn, NY









On Fri, Mar 30, 2018 at 7:52 PM, David Barrett 
> wrote:
Birds are back! There have been 38 Manhattan alerts already today, including 
American Bittern. It's been a big day in the other boroughs, too. And the 
season is just getting started.

These alerts cover both rarities AND non-rarities of interest, such as the 
first few arrivals of expected migrants, like the Palm and Louisiana Warblers 
we had today. Posts of birding news or general birding conditions are fine, too.

To receive these alerts, follow the accounts on Twitter that are of interest to 
you. The alerts are always publicly-viewable and searchable, both on Twitter 
and on the web. Click on the links to see the stream of recent alerts:

Manhattan: @BirdCentralPark, https://twitter.com/BirdCentralPark, #birdcp

Bronx: @BirdBronx, https://twitter.com/BirdBronx, #birdbx

Brooklyn: @BirdBrklyn, https://twitter.com/BirdBrklyn, #birdbk

Queens: @BirdQueens, https://twitter.com/BirdQueens, #birdqu

You can set your phone to notify you with sound or vibration as alerts arrive.

To issue alerts yourself, first become a followed user by sending a direct 
message on Twitter to one of the above accounts. Or email me and I will get you 
set up.

Then to send an alert you just "tweet" using the appropriate hashtag as above. 
For example, to send 

Re: [nysbirds-l] Real-time bird alerts for Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens

[Larry Trachtenberg]

Even though “the world is turning and you can’t slow down,” I have chosen never 
to have tweeted, retweeted, used instagram, Ingraham, facebook, linked in or 
willingly participate in any form of social media.  Getting old is not so bad 
considering where the world is going even if you miss a bird “here, there and 
everywhere”, as reportage of bird sightings migrates to sources one may choose 
not to use.  It seems to me though not knowing any of the participants to this 
debate; isn’t the whole point of the social media thing once it’s out there 
it’s out there for better or perhaps more often for worse and if you choose to 
give the the new robber barons like Zuckerberg your personal info, well  
and if you choose to follow what Kim Kardashian eats, well; and if you tweet 
the identity and location of a bird, well 

Seems this newest bird community feud is merely a redux of the photographer v. 
birder antagonisms not to mention the debate regarding the absurd -unethical 
many would say - use of incessant play back by some charging $ to lead bird 
walks so their customers can get better photographs — all issues that hopefully 
won’t Trump reports of actual bird sightings as migration gets in to full 
swing.  Happy birding.

As for birds, I did see a meadowlark at Croton Point today.

L. Trachtenberg
Ossining, NY.

P.s. “Can’t we all just get along” — kidding 

Sent from my iPhone

On Mar 30, 2018, at 8:37 PM, Sean Sime 
mailto:s...@seansime.com>> wrote:

There has been much discussion off-list regarding the Twitter alert systems you 
have set up and the many unknowns I'm hoping you may be able to shed some light 
on to the list and therefore I'm replying here.
We all agree there can be great benefit to information sharing via social 
media. Yet there are many who are concerned regarding your practice of posting 
sensitive species locations, currently daytime roosting owls, but given line #4 
in your post, "There are no restricted species" it would imply nesting species 
as we move into season as well.

While many people in Kings County were eager to give the birdbk hashtag a try 
it quickly seemed to push the limits of our local birding community's ethics in 
this regard. This post is in no way an attempt to have a discussion regarding 
what level of intrusion on bird life is appropriate. While most of us follow 
the ABA Code of Ethics or follow similar guidelines via local organizations or 
eBird it is easy to understand different people have different opinions on the 
matter.

What I am wondering and I'm hoping you will shed some light on is the apparent 
harvesting of data outside of the purview of people who are using the hashtag, 
whether from eBird, local text alerts or what have you. What seems particularly 
troubling is that multiple people have specifically DM'd you and asked that you 
do not use their tweets and you continue to retweet them anyway, although 
apparently stripping their names from your posting.

Given the current events, it seems appropriate people should have a full 
understanding of how their data is being gathered, stored and used.

While reasonable people may disagree on what is ethical birding or not I see 
less room for different interpretations when it comes to ignoring a member of 
the birding community's direct request to have you not use their data. As one 
human being to another this seems to be completely lacking in civility. I hope 
you will take the time to respond to these concerns to the list as they are 
shared by many people in the NYC birding community.

Kind regards,

Sean Sime
Brooklyn, NY









On Fri, Mar 30, 2018 at 7:52 PM, David Barrett 
mailto:mil...@gmail.com>> wrote:
Birds are back! There have been 38 Manhattan alerts already today, including 
American Bittern. It's been a big day in the other boroughs, too. And the 
season is just getting started.

These alerts cover both rarities AND non-rarities of interest, such as the 
first few arrivals of expected migrants, like the Palm and Louisiana Warblers 
we had today. Posts of birding news or general birding conditions are fine, too.

To receive these alerts, follow the accounts on Twitter that are of interest to 
you. The alerts are always publicly-viewable and searchable, both on Twitter 
and on the web. Click on the links to see the stream of recent alerts:

Manhattan: @BirdCentralPark, https://twitter.com/BirdCentralPark, #birdcp

Bronx: @BirdBronx, https://twitter.com/BirdBronx, #birdbx

Brooklyn: @BirdBrklyn, https://twitter.com/BirdBrklyn, #birdbk

Queens: @BirdQueens, https://twitter.com/BirdQueens, #birdqu

You can set your phone to notify you with sound or vibration as alerts arrive.

To issue alerts yourself, first become a followed user by sending a direct 
message on Twitter to one of the above accounts. Or email me and I will get you 
set up.

Then to send an alert you just "tweet" using the appropriate hashtag as above. 
For example, to send an alert for Queens:

Piping Plover 

Re: [nysbirds-l] Real-time bird alerts for Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens

[Joshua Malbin]

David, I truly believe you have nothing but the best intentions for these
alerts and want them to enrich and expand the birding experience for all.
But at the same time, your product has entered an existing Twitter
community that had certain norms, and has not respected those norms you
disagree with. Not all of those norms were or are universally agreed on by
everyone in that group, but they were and are largely shared.

You are right that you are not violating any terms of use or actual rights.
But many of us who enjoyed our local Twitter community in Brooklyn no
longer do, as a direct result of #birdbk. Many of that community's most
active posters are restricting our Twitter use or migrating to other
platforms.

I, at least, do not mean to make you defensive. But please see that many of
the intended users of your product do not enjoy it the way you had hoped,
at least in this pocket of the birding world, and that as a result it is
having an effect opposite to your intent. I don't want to exaggerate the
importance of Twitter, but let's say it is is ever-so-slightly lessening
the birding experience rather than ever-so-slightly enhancing it.

On Fri, Mar 30, 2018 at 11:19 PM David Barrett  wrote:

> Sean and all,
>
> Let me address your issues point-by-point.
>
> No one is required to post on anything, and no one is required to "chase"
> any of the alerts. You and all birders are free to post as you see fit or
> not post, for whatever reasons you have -- ethical or otherwise. None of
> the county alerts have ever posted on a species on the eBird Sensitive
> Species List, and it is likely that they never will. Though if a Gyrfalcon
> ever chances to visit Brooklyn again, I suspect you will want to see it. So
> will a lot of other people.
>
> I strongly encourage all users of my alerts to treat wildlife with
> appropriate respect. Ultimately, what anyone does with the alert info is a
> matter of personal choice.
>
> The alerts rely on public information and on tweets contributed freely and
> willingly by followed users. In particular, publicly-visible eBird reports
> are *public* information: anyone can view these reports online.
>
> That said, as a general rule and out of respect for people's privacy, I do
> not attribute names to reports of eBird users who do not follow the county
> alerts on which I post the info. I may rarely include the eBird list as a
> link, a permitted use of eBird info. The report itself is a matter of
> public record. My posting that there is a "Eurasian Wigeon at Marine Park"
> does not infringe on anyone's privacy.
>
> In further point of fact, I do not see any Direct Messages on my account
> of people asking that I not use their tweets. Not that it would matter --
> for reasons I discuss below. I do have a lot of messages thanking me for
> running a great site and helping them to see the birds they wanted to see.
>
> As a Twitter user you are aware that tweets posted on Twitter enter the
> public realm -- same with anything you post on the internet. Private
> information is a different matter, and Twitter has a policy on that:
>
> https://help.twitter.com/en/rules-and-policies/personal-information
>
> But I am not posting people's credit card numbers (of course that is
> against Twitter rules). Twitter allows posting people's names, but I do not
> even do that -- nor do I even post their Twitter handles -- if they are NOT
> followers.
>
> I run sites that provide birding information, and I post such information
> as I am made aware of it. That is most certainly a fair use of Twitter
> info.
>
> Often other users pass information along to me from what they read or see.
> If someone I trust tells me, "There is an Eastern Phoebe at Lullwater" I
> will tweet "Eastern Phoebe reported at Lullwater." Maybe you were the
> initial finder of the bird. Maybe you even tweeted it -- I don't know. If
> you want credit, ask to follow my alerts and use them. But, no, you do not
> get to decide that I cannot tweet that a certain wild bird might be in a
> certain public place just because you saw it there!
>
> Major League Baseball, by comparison, legally sells the rights to
> broadcast its games. Still, I can tweet, "Severino struck out the side in
> the 3rd" if I want -- even if the hitters he struck out would prefer that
> information be kept quiet, and even if a hundred other fans tweeted the
> same thing.
>
> To be clear, I am just another Twitter user. You see how Twitter works --
> people say stuff on Twitter, and then other people respond to it. Sometimes
> people say embarrassing things they immediately wish they had not said, and
> then that stuff gets retweeted or quote-tweeted a million times and jobs
> are lost and lives ruined. The excuse, "Sorry, I wanted that tweet to be
> kept private" carries no weight. That is just not how Twitter works.
>
> So no, there is no Facebook analogy here. I do not own any of your data. I
> do not even make any money from the alerts 

Re: [nysbirds-l] Real-time bird alerts for Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens

[Joshua Malbin]

David, I truly believe you have nothing but the best intentions for these
alerts and want them to enrich and expand the birding experience for all.
But at the same time, your product has entered an existing Twitter
community that had certain norms, and has not respected those norms you
disagree with. Not all of those norms were or are universally agreed on by
everyone in that group, but they were and are largely shared.

You are right that you are not violating any terms of use or actual rights.
But many of us who enjoyed our local Twitter community in Brooklyn no
longer do, as a direct result of #birdbk. Many of that community's most
active posters are restricting our Twitter use or migrating to other
platforms.

I, at least, do not mean to make you defensive. But please see that many of
the intended users of your product do not enjoy it the way you had hoped,
at least in this pocket of the birding world, and that as a result it is
having an effect opposite to your intent. I don't want to exaggerate the
importance of Twitter, but let's say it is is ever-so-slightly lessening
the birding experience rather than ever-so-slightly enhancing it.

On Fri, Mar 30, 2018 at 11:19 PM David Barrett  wrote:

> Sean and all,
>
> Let me address your issues point-by-point.
>
> No one is required to post on anything, and no one is required to "chase"
> any of the alerts. You and all birders are free to post as you see fit or
> not post, for whatever reasons you have -- ethical or otherwise. None of
> the county alerts have ever posted on a species on the eBird Sensitive
> Species List, and it is likely that they never will. Though if a Gyrfalcon
> ever chances to visit Brooklyn again, I suspect you will want to see it. So
> will a lot of other people.
>
> I strongly encourage all users of my alerts to treat wildlife with
> appropriate respect. Ultimately, what anyone does with the alert info is a
> matter of personal choice.
>
> The alerts rely on public information and on tweets contributed freely and
> willingly by followed users. In particular, publicly-visible eBird reports
> are *public* information: anyone can view these reports online.
>
> That said, as a general rule and out of respect for people's privacy, I do
> not attribute names to reports of eBird users who do not follow the county
> alerts on which I post the info. I may rarely include the eBird list as a
> link, a permitted use of eBird info. The report itself is a matter of
> public record. My posting that there is a "Eurasian Wigeon at Marine Park"
> does not infringe on anyone's privacy.
>
> In further point of fact, I do not see any Direct Messages on my account
> of people asking that I not use their tweets. Not that it would matter --
> for reasons I discuss below. I do have a lot of messages thanking me for
> running a great site and helping them to see the birds they wanted to see.
>
> As a Twitter user you are aware that tweets posted on Twitter enter the
> public realm -- same with anything you post on the internet. Private
> information is a different matter, and Twitter has a policy on that:
>
> https://help.twitter.com/en/rules-and-policies/personal-information
>
> But I am not posting people's credit card numbers (of course that is
> against Twitter rules). Twitter allows posting people's names, but I do not
> even do that -- nor do I even post their Twitter handles -- if they are NOT
> followers.
>
> I run sites that provide birding information, and I post such information
> as I am made aware of it. That is most certainly a fair use of Twitter
> info.
>
> Often other users pass information along to me from what they read or see.
> If someone I trust tells me, "There is an Eastern Phoebe at Lullwater" I
> will tweet "Eastern Phoebe reported at Lullwater." Maybe you were the
> initial finder of the bird. Maybe you even tweeted it -- I don't know. If
> you want credit, ask to follow my alerts and use them. But, no, you do not
> get to decide that I cannot tweet that a certain wild bird might be in a
> certain public place just because you saw it there!
>
> Major League Baseball, by comparison, legally sells the rights to
> broadcast its games. Still, I can tweet, "Severino struck out the side in
> the 3rd" if I want -- even if the hitters he struck out would prefer that
> information be kept quiet, and even if a hundred other fans tweeted the
> same thing.
>
> To be clear, I am just another Twitter user. You see how Twitter works --
> people say stuff on Twitter, and then other people respond to it. Sometimes
> people say embarrassing things they immediately wish they had not said, and
> then that stuff gets retweeted or quote-tweeted a million times and jobs
> are lost and lives ruined. The excuse, "Sorry, I wanted that tweet to be
> kept private" carries no weight. That is just not how Twitter works.
>
> So no, there is no Facebook analogy here. I do not own any of your data. I
> do not even make any money from the alerts -- in fact, I pay