Regarding recent sightings & reports of Bronx County (N.Y. City) waders (a.k.a. shorebirds to many Americans) -
With the interest & excitement of such a fine showing of shorebirds in even the northern realms of N.Y. City, & as exemplified by keen birders getting out & finding them -& including much-less-expected species for some locations- I was interested to hear from the ‘dean’ among living Bronx County birders and ornithologists, who happens to be the first author of the recent work (and intensive, serious studies done over many decades), “Urban Ornithology” - Paul A. Buckley - and was fortunate to hear directly from him on the very recent discovery of Wilson’s Phalarope for Bronx County - and as some of us very-local ‘loyalists” will also delightedly point out, a fine, newest WEST-Bronx record of that phalarope species, at that! (There is a mostly hyper-local & fun-spirited century-long relationship of east vs. west Bronx bird-finds and records, with the divide often being drawn as east of Bronx River, or west of that river.) The Jerome Park Reservoir of Bronx County, N.Y. City is in the western half of that county, by any definitions. As P.A. Buckley noted to me, and as documented (notably, not in eBird's historical records, it seems, and that is not a unique situation for many records older or not-so-old, in that forum’s world-wide data-base - all data systems have some parts where a lack of info. is part of the system): there are at least a few older records for Wilson’s Phalarope in Bronx County, N.Y. City - these include 2 records in 1924, at the Bronx zoo grounds (which is still a wonderful place to see & to look for all manner of migrants & in any & all seasons) and at Hunts Point (which is best-known or was, as the entire city of New York’s terminal for fresh produce, & much more of all manner of commercial & some industrial uses; there are also some parcels of habitat, including waterfront, which potentially could see migrants & visting birds at any season even today; there are some small public parks & green-spaces there as well); and: also records for Wilson’s Phalarope exist from the 1950’s & 1960’s in an area known as Baxter’s Creek, Bronx. This points to the current-latest sightings of Wilson’s Phalarope for the Bronx, at the Jerome Park Reservoir, as being perhaps the first in about a half-century. Well-done, Patrick Horan. This is another in the long & fine history of serious & dedicated Bronx-birders, who have shown what can be learned & seen in that county, during -and since !!- the days of the renowned Bronx County Bird Club & its many illustrious & accomplished memebers over the years. He is in a tradition, and is helping to show what keen, serious field-work means to the local study of birds and their movements - and may many more also be such a fine exemplar. And, yes - there are established records as well for the other 2 species of Phalarope (Red, & Red-necked) in Bronx County, N.Y. City (and these, or some of these, may be stored in eBird.) With absolutely no stakes, financial or otherwise, I heartily recommend all N.Y. birders and also birders world-wide to take a look at “Urban Ornithology” - P.A. Buckley & others, authors - as published by Cornell University Press, & now also available in many fine school / university libraries, research instititutions, & perhaps your local library. (And if not, inquire - they may be able to find it & order it in.) This book is no 'fast & easy’ quick read, it is serious scholarship, & goes into much detail with points that touch on birds & birding, & more generally, history / ecology, & more, which is of interest to those who not only study birds for a living but also or for their pleasure & enlightenment. In terms of local - state - or any sorts of bird records (& for much else recorded in nature & in history) it is also always good to keep in mind the fantastic resources of our superb museums, such as in New York City the American Museum of Natural History, & many others, the State Museum of New York in Albany as (just one other of) another example, as well as many great University and College or other schools and institutution’s collections, records, libraries, & further resources which are priceless storehouses & also often highly active in research, both in the field & in the lab, & beyond, in considering any researching, record-requesting, knowledge-increasing endeavors of the avian- or other-studies sorts. There may also be some private holdings of many kinds that will welcome serious researchers & students to peruse collections, or to make inquiries. A lot can be gleaned “on-line”, however much also is available equally in seeking information via some of these original sources, & some of those many sources can lead to great and serious study and further knowledge.These bases of knowledge also are compatible - and often may be linked. Good bird-finding & local-study, Tom Fiore manhattan - & elsewhere -- 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/ --
