Re: [nysbirds-l] Spotted Towhee question - Baldwin, LI (Nassau County)
Hello all, Speaking of tracking vagrants, I'm sure you will all remember a few weeks ago the reports of a young brown pelican that was flying up, then down the Hudson River? Well, this was in the 'good news' section of a daily COVID Newsletter that New York State issues daily, dated 05 Feb (my sisters subscribe, and forwarded to me), I make no conclusions if its the same bird: Tonight's "Deep Breath Moment": After a pelican got lost and ended up in the cold waters of Connecticut, a local flying club helped the bird find its way south. Pelicans are seldom seen north of Virginia, so it was a surprise when a pelican was found, half-frozen and injured, in a Connecticut marina—perhaps having been blown too far north in a storm. Fortunately, the pelican, named Arvay, was rescued and given care that saved its life. A pilot at a Connecticut flying club then flew the bird to Florida in her small plane. "I just love animals and do anything I can to help animals, so when I saw this and saw he needed to get to his new home, I figured why not help out," said the pilot, Arianna Strand. Arvay is now recovering at the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary in Jupiter, Florida. (Shai, Karen, I'm not sure i can 'post' to the list so if this doesnt show up there, feel free to post/paste it in yourselves) Steve R. On 2/15/21, Shaibal Mitra wrote: > Hi Karen and all, > > I haven't looked at a lot of photos of either bird, but my impression is > that the MA bird's brown areas are browner and its dorsal spots are whiter > than the LI bird's (grayer on the head and back and buffier on the dorsal > spots). But this could be an artifact of lighting or photography. > > With improved coverage, communication, and photographs it has became > possible in recent years to link widely spaced detections of vagrants to > individual birds--much to the amazement of some of us. Most often, however, > these events involve larger and more conspicuous species, such as pelicans, > raptors, and shorebirds. Conversely, there are several reasons to believe > that we are overlooking the vast majority of reclusive passerine vagrants. > For instance, two things happen each year in mid-late March: known vagrants > over-wintering at feeders (or like this bird) wander off and disappear, not > to be detected anywhere else; but at the same time, new vagrants are > detected by birders in the act of birding, implying that these too had > wintered nearby but had gone undetected for months. I'd also add that it is > the norm, not the exception, for vagrants of a given species to occur in > bunches, owing to the year to year variability in the processes driving > vagrancy (e.g., population trends on the breeding grounds, environmental > conditions conducive to long-distance dispersal, etc.). > > Even so, it is worthwhile asking the question and publishing evidence for > identity, when it is found. > > Best, > Shai > > From: bounce-125386974-3714...@list.cornell.edu > [bounce-125386974-3714...@list.cornell.edu] on behalf of Karen Fung > [easternblueb...@gmail.com] > Sent: Sunday, February 14, 2021 8:13 PM > To: nysbirds-L@cornell.edu > Subject: [nysbirds-l] Spotted Towhee question - Baldwin, LI (Nassau County) > > Hi All, > Has anyone considered the possibility that this bird, first reported by Shai > and Pat on 2 January, is the same individual that was widely reported in > Bristol County, MA from 9 November - 15 December 2020? > > The Massachusetts bird was ID'd as an immature, and the few photos I > examined of that individual looked similar to the many photos of the Baldwin > bird. The one audio recording of the Baldwin bird sounds similar to the > many recordings of the one in MA, but if this is an immature, then the > spectrograms don't even have to be an exact match if the bird is still > learning its song repertoire (please correct me if I'm wrong). > > Here is the search I used on eBird to produce the reports. Not sure if you > need to log in to see the actual query. > > https://ebird.org/map/spotow?neg=true=-72.1743936079403=40.95926453047936=-70.49485869583093=42.03817728084794=true=false=Z=on=11=2=range=2019=2021 > > Thoughts, anyone? Spotted Towhee is a pretty rare find in the Northeast. I > have not tried for this bird yet. > > Thanks, > Karen Fung > NYC > > > -- > NYSbirds-L List Info: > Welcome and Basics<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm> > Rules and Information<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm> > Subscribe, Configuration and > Leave<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm> > Archives: > The Mail > Archive<http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html> >
Re: [nysbirds-l] Spotted Towhee question - Baldwin, LI (Nassau County)
Hello all, Speaking of tracking vagrants, I'm sure you will all remember a few weeks ago the reports of a young brown pelican that was flying up, then down the Hudson River? Well, this was in the 'good news' section of a daily COVID Newsletter that New York State issues daily, dated 05 Feb (my sisters subscribe, and forwarded to me), I make no conclusions if its the same bird: Tonight's "Deep Breath Moment": After a pelican got lost and ended up in the cold waters of Connecticut, a local flying club helped the bird find its way south. Pelicans are seldom seen north of Virginia, so it was a surprise when a pelican was found, half-frozen and injured, in a Connecticut marina—perhaps having been blown too far north in a storm. Fortunately, the pelican, named Arvay, was rescued and given care that saved its life. A pilot at a Connecticut flying club then flew the bird to Florida in her small plane. "I just love animals and do anything I can to help animals, so when I saw this and saw he needed to get to his new home, I figured why not help out," said the pilot, Arianna Strand. Arvay is now recovering at the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary in Jupiter, Florida. (Shai, Karen, I'm not sure i can 'post' to the list so if this doesnt show up there, feel free to post/paste it in yourselves) Steve R. On 2/15/21, Shaibal Mitra wrote: > Hi Karen and all, > > I haven't looked at a lot of photos of either bird, but my impression is > that the MA bird's brown areas are browner and its dorsal spots are whiter > than the LI bird's (grayer on the head and back and buffier on the dorsal > spots). But this could be an artifact of lighting or photography. > > With improved coverage, communication, and photographs it has became > possible in recent years to link widely spaced detections of vagrants to > individual birds--much to the amazement of some of us. Most often, however, > these events involve larger and more conspicuous species, such as pelicans, > raptors, and shorebirds. Conversely, there are several reasons to believe > that we are overlooking the vast majority of reclusive passerine vagrants. > For instance, two things happen each year in mid-late March: known vagrants > over-wintering at feeders (or like this bird) wander off and disappear, not > to be detected anywhere else; but at the same time, new vagrants are > detected by birders in the act of birding, implying that these too had > wintered nearby but had gone undetected for months. I'd also add that it is > the norm, not the exception, for vagrants of a given species to occur in > bunches, owing to the year to year variability in the processes driving > vagrancy (e.g., population trends on the breeding grounds, environmental > conditions conducive to long-distance dispersal, etc.). > > Even so, it is worthwhile asking the question and publishing evidence for > identity, when it is found. > > Best, > Shai > > From: bounce-125386974-3714...@list.cornell.edu > [bounce-125386974-3714...@list.cornell.edu] on behalf of Karen Fung > [easternblueb...@gmail.com] > Sent: Sunday, February 14, 2021 8:13 PM > To: nysbirds-L@cornell.edu > Subject: [nysbirds-l] Spotted Towhee question - Baldwin, LI (Nassau County) > > Hi All, > Has anyone considered the possibility that this bird, first reported by Shai > and Pat on 2 January, is the same individual that was widely reported in > Bristol County, MA from 9 November - 15 December 2020? > > The Massachusetts bird was ID'd as an immature, and the few photos I > examined of that individual looked similar to the many photos of the Baldwin > bird. The one audio recording of the Baldwin bird sounds similar to the > many recordings of the one in MA, but if this is an immature, then the > spectrograms don't even have to be an exact match if the bird is still > learning its song repertoire (please correct me if I'm wrong). > > Here is the search I used on eBird to produce the reports. Not sure if you > need to log in to see the actual query. > > https://ebird.org/map/spotow?neg=true=-72.1743936079403=40.95926453047936=-70.49485869583093=42.03817728084794=true=false=Z=on=11=2=range=2019=2021 > > Thoughts, anyone? Spotted Towhee is a pretty rare find in the Northeast. I > have not tried for this bird yet. > > Thanks, > Karen Fung > NYC > > > -- > NYSbirds-L List Info: > Welcome and Basics<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm> > Rules and Information<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm> > Subscribe, Configuration and > Leave<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm> > Archives: > The Mail > Archive<http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html> >
RE: [nysbirds-l] Spotted Towhee question - Baldwin, LI (Nassau County)
Hi Karen and all, I haven't looked at a lot of photos of either bird, but my impression is that the MA bird's brown areas are browner and its dorsal spots are whiter than the LI bird's (grayer on the head and back and buffier on the dorsal spots). But this could be an artifact of lighting or photography. With improved coverage, communication, and photographs it has became possible in recent years to link widely spaced detections of vagrants to individual birds--much to the amazement of some of us. Most often, however, these events involve larger and more conspicuous species, such as pelicans, raptors, and shorebirds. Conversely, there are several reasons to believe that we are overlooking the vast majority of reclusive passerine vagrants. For instance, two things happen each year in mid-late March: known vagrants over-wintering at feeders (or like this bird) wander off and disappear, not to be detected anywhere else; but at the same time, new vagrants are detected by birders in the act of birding, implying that these too had wintered nearby but had gone undetected for months. I'd also add that it is the norm, not the exception, for vagrants of a given species to occur in bunches, owing to the year to year variability in the processes driving vagrancy (e.g., population trends on the breeding grounds, environmental conditions conducive to long-distance dispersal, etc.). Even so, it is worthwhile asking the question and publishing evidence for identity, when it is found. Best, Shai From: bounce-125386974-3714...@list.cornell.edu [bounce-125386974-3714...@list.cornell.edu] on behalf of Karen Fung [easternblueb...@gmail.com] Sent: Sunday, February 14, 2021 8:13 PM To: nysbirds-L@cornell.edu Subject: [nysbirds-l] Spotted Towhee question - Baldwin, LI (Nassau County) Hi All, Has anyone considered the possibility that this bird, first reported by Shai and Pat on 2 January, is the same individual that was widely reported in Bristol County, MA from 9 November - 15 December 2020? The Massachusetts bird was ID'd as an immature, and the few photos I examined of that individual looked similar to the many photos of the Baldwin bird. The one audio recording of the Baldwin bird sounds similar to the many recordings of the one in MA, but if this is an immature, then the spectrograms don't even have to be an exact match if the bird is still learning its song repertoire (please correct me if I'm wrong). Here is the search I used on eBird to produce the reports. Not sure if you need to log in to see the actual query. https://ebird.org/map/spotow?neg=true=-72.1743936079403=40.95926453047936=-70.49485869583093=42.03817728084794=true=false=Z=on=11=2=range=2019=2021 Thoughts, anyone? Spotted Towhee is a pretty rare find in the Northeast. I have not tried for this bird yet. Thanks, Karen Fung NYC -- NYSbirds-L List Info: Welcome and Basics<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm> Rules and Information<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm> Subscribe, Configuration and Leave<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm> Archives: The Mail Archive<http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html> Surfbirds<http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L> ABA<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/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] Spotted Towhee question - Baldwin, LI (Nassau County)
Hi Karen and all, I haven't looked at a lot of photos of either bird, but my impression is that the MA bird's brown areas are browner and its dorsal spots are whiter than the LI bird's (grayer on the head and back and buffier on the dorsal spots). But this could be an artifact of lighting or photography. With improved coverage, communication, and photographs it has became possible in recent years to link widely spaced detections of vagrants to individual birds--much to the amazement of some of us. Most often, however, these events involve larger and more conspicuous species, such as pelicans, raptors, and shorebirds. Conversely, there are several reasons to believe that we are overlooking the vast majority of reclusive passerine vagrants. For instance, two things happen each year in mid-late March: known vagrants over-wintering at feeders (or like this bird) wander off and disappear, not to be detected anywhere else; but at the same time, new vagrants are detected by birders in the act of birding, implying that these too had wintered nearby but had gone undetected for months. I'd also add that it is the norm, not the exception, for vagrants of a given species to occur in bunches, owing to the year to year variability in the processes driving vagrancy (e.g., population trends on the breeding grounds, environmental conditions conducive to long-distance dispersal, etc.). Even so, it is worthwhile asking the question and publishing evidence for identity, when it is found. Best, Shai From: bounce-125386974-3714...@list.cornell.edu [bounce-125386974-3714...@list.cornell.edu] on behalf of Karen Fung [easternblueb...@gmail.com] Sent: Sunday, February 14, 2021 8:13 PM To: nysbirds-L@cornell.edu Subject: [nysbirds-l] Spotted Towhee question - Baldwin, LI (Nassau County) Hi All, Has anyone considered the possibility that this bird, first reported by Shai and Pat on 2 January, is the same individual that was widely reported in Bristol County, MA from 9 November - 15 December 2020? The Massachusetts bird was ID'd as an immature, and the few photos I examined of that individual looked similar to the many photos of the Baldwin bird. The one audio recording of the Baldwin bird sounds similar to the many recordings of the one in MA, but if this is an immature, then the spectrograms don't even have to be an exact match if the bird is still learning its song repertoire (please correct me if I'm wrong). Here is the search I used on eBird to produce the reports. Not sure if you need to log in to see the actual query. https://ebird.org/map/spotow?neg=true=-72.1743936079403=40.95926453047936=-70.49485869583093=42.03817728084794=true=false=Z=on=11=2=range=2019=2021 Thoughts, anyone? Spotted Towhee is a pretty rare find in the Northeast. I have not tried for this bird yet. Thanks, Karen Fung NYC -- NYSbirds-L List Info: Welcome and Basics<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm> Rules and Information<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm> Subscribe, Configuration and Leave<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm> Archives: The Mail Archive<http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html> Surfbirds<http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L> ABA<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/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] Spotted Towhee question - Baldwin, LI (Nassau County)
Hi All, Has anyone considered the possibility that this bird, first reported by Shai and Pat on 2 January, is the same individual that was widely reported in Bristol County, MA from 9 November - 15 December 2020? The Massachusetts bird was ID'd as an immature, and the few photos I examined of that individual looked similar to the many photos of the Baldwin bird. The one audio recording of the Baldwin bird sounds similar to the many recordings of the one in MA, but if this is an immature, then the spectrograms don't even have to be an exact match if the bird is still learning its song repertoire (please correct me if I'm wrong). Here is the search I used on eBird to produce the reports. Not sure if you need to log in to see the actual query. https://ebird.org/map/spotow?neg=true=-72.1743936079403=40.95926453047936=-70.49485869583093=42.03817728084794=true=false=Z=on=11=2=range=2019=2021 Thoughts, anyone? Spotted Towhee is a pretty rare find in the Northeast. I have not tried for this bird yet. Thanks, Karen Fung NYC -- 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] Spotted Towhee question - Baldwin, LI (Nassau County)
Hi All, Has anyone considered the possibility that this bird, first reported by Shai and Pat on 2 January, is the same individual that was widely reported in Bristol County, MA from 9 November - 15 December 2020? The Massachusetts bird was ID'd as an immature, and the few photos I examined of that individual looked similar to the many photos of the Baldwin bird. The one audio recording of the Baldwin bird sounds similar to the many recordings of the one in MA, but if this is an immature, then the spectrograms don't even have to be an exact match if the bird is still learning its song repertoire (please correct me if I'm wrong). Here is the search I used on eBird to produce the reports. Not sure if you need to log in to see the actual query. https://ebird.org/map/spotow?neg=true=-72.1743936079403=40.95926453047936=-70.49485869583093=42.03817728084794=true=false=Z=on=11=2=range=2019=2021 Thoughts, anyone? Spotted Towhee is a pretty rare find in the Northeast. I have not tried for this bird yet. Thanks, Karen Fung NYC -- 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/ --
