Rare Bird Alert Tuesday, 27 October 1998 Baton Rouge Audubon Society Rare Bird Alert Area: Baton Rouge and Louisiana statewide Highlights: BLACK SCOTER WHITE-TAILED KITE ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK * (* Louisiana State Review List) BUFF-BELLIED HUMMINGBIRD RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER VERMILION FLYCATCHER BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER BULLOCK'S ORIOLE * SHINY COWBIRD * (possible - not relocated) BRONZED COWBIRD Others birds mentioned: horned grebe anhinga black-bellied whistling-duck ruddy duck greater white-fronted goose american wigeon louisiana (aka tricolored) heron white ibis glossy ibis wood stork osprey bald eagle cooper's hawk merlin peregrine falcon yellow rail american coot least sandpiper piping plover snowy plover lesser black-backed gull black tern least tern common loon chimney swift eastern wood-pewee yellow-bellied flycatcher acadian flycatcher alder/willow flycatcher scissor-tailed flycatcher eastern kingbird white-eyed vireo red-eyed vireo warbling vireo swainson's thrush gray catbird brown-headed nuthatch cliff swallow sprague's pipit blue-winged warbler nashville warbler yellow-rumped warbler prairie warbler prothonotary warbler worm-eating warbler mourning warbler white-crowned sparrow savannah sparrow leconte's sparrow lark sparrow summer tanager scarlet tanager dickcissel indigo bunting Transcript: Welcome birders to the BRAS' rare bird alert. The following was recorded on Tuesday October 27. Highlights include a BLACK SCOTER, WHITE-TAILED KITES, a ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK, an OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER, VERMILION FLYCATCHERS, a BLACK- THROATED BLUE WARBLER, the report of a SHINY COWBIRD and BRONZED COWBIRDS in Cameron Parish and a BULLOCK'S ORIOLE and a BUFF-BELLIED HUMMINGBIRD in LaPlace. From the LOS weekend on 10/24 in Cameron Parish - a BLACK SCOTER off Rutherford Beach; 6 WHITE-TAILED KITES along LA 82 near Holly Beach; a ROUGH- LEGGED HAWK near the Equinox Oil field off LA 82 in Johnson Bayou; an OLIVE- SIDED FLYCATCHER, a female VERMILION FLYCATCHER and a female BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER at the Equinox Oil field and a VERMILION at the cemetery near the Johnson Bayou High School; a report of a SHINY COWBIRD about a half mile from the western ferry landing; and at least 2 BRONZED COWBIRDS in a residential area in Cameron. Call if you would like directions to any of these spots. The SHINY COWBIRD could not be relocated the next day. A male BULLOCK'S ORIOLE is coming to a feeder in LaPlace since around the end of September. From Airline Hwy in LaPlace, turn north by the McDonald's onto Carrollwood. Go to the second stop sign and turn left onto Concord. Go 1 block and turn right onto Glendale. The oriole and usually some wintering hummingbirds are at the second house on the left (1409 Glendale). Be prepared for a long wait as he only comes a few times sporadically throughout the day. The male BUFF-BELLIED HUMMINGBIRD continues at 800 Fagot Loop in LaPlace and a BUFF-BELLY is in New Orleans. A number of RUFOUS (or at least selasphorus) HUMMINGBIRDS are in Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Lafayette. Call if you would like more detailed directions (225-763-6805). Migration reports are still coming in, but I only mention ones that constitute late or early dates, high numbers or are unusual for the locale. Sightings from 10/26: 2 adult BALD EAGLES flying past the French Quarter in New Orleans. Sightings from 10/25: a BALD EAGLE over the Red River in Caddo Parish; a late WARBLING VIREO in Mandeville; an immature SCISSOR-TAILED FLYCATCHER on Nicholson Drive in front of the new LSU golf course in Baton Rouge; 3 ANHINGAS, a COOPER'S HAWK, 1-2 SWAINSON'S THRUSHES, a female MOURNING WARBLER, a SCARLET TANAGER and 5-6 INDIGO BUNTINGS in St. Gabriel in Iberville Parish; 7 BALD EAGLES congregating near the US 90 bridge at Amelia in St Mary Parish; and 2 BRONZED COWBIRDS continued in Cameron. Sightings from 10/24: 3 early HORNED GREBES, 950 RUDDY DUCKS and 6500 AMERICAN COOTS on Cross Lake in Caddo Parish; a COOPER'S HAWK in Mandeville; SWAINSON'S THRUSH in St Gabriel; and BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING-DUCK, GLOSSY IBIS, OSPREY, COOPER'S HAWK, MERLIN, PEREGRINE FALCON, late PIPING PLOVER, SNOWY PLOVER, a LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL, late BLACK TERN, LEAST TERN, early COMMON LOON, late EASTERN WOOD-PEWEE, YELLOW-BELLIED FLYCATCHER, ALDER/WILLOW FLYCATCHER, WHITE-EYED VIREO, SWAINSON'S THRUSH, CLIFF SWALLOW, BLUE-WINGED, NASHVILLE, PRAIRIE, PROTHONOTARY and WORM-EATING WARBLER, LARK SPARROW and SUMMER and SCARLET TANAGER in Cameron Parish. Sightings from 10/23: a couple of WHITE IBIS along River Road south of LSU in Baton Rouge; a LOUISIANA HERON, SWAINSON'S THRUSH and a late DICKCISSEL in St Gabriel; and 2 WHITE-TAILED KITES along LA 27 near Holly Beach. Sightings from 10/22: an OSPREY, a COOPER'S HAWK, a PEREGRINE and 23 YELLOW- RUMPED WARBLERS near Recovery One in New Orleans east; 4 OSPREY and 50-60 INDIGO BUNTINGS in New Orleans; a WHITE-EYED VIREO still at the Chalmette Battlefield in St Bernard Parish; 120 AMERICAN WIGEON and 175 LEAST SANDPIPERS along the Red River and 60 WHITE-CROWNED and 80 SAVANNAH SPARROWS in Caddo Parish; and SWAINSON'S THRUSH, a SPRAGUE'S PIPIT and ~25 YELLOW-RUMPS migrating over St Gabriel. Sightings from 10/21: 2 E W-PEWEES and 100-200 GRAY CATBIRDS in New Orleans; a rather late EASTERN KINGBIRD in Chalmette; 1 OSPREY, 2 early COMMON LOONS and 5400 COOTS on Cross Lake; an OSPREY, a late ACADIAN FLYCATCHER, RED-EYED VIREO and SWAINSON'S THRUSH in St. Gabriel; and over 500 GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE, 200 WOOD STORKS and 6 YELLOW RAILS in the ricefields between Rayne and Crowley. The rails were flushed by combines harvesting the rice. And a pair of BROWN-HEADED NUTHATCHES are coming to a feeder in Livingston. Call if you would like to see them. Sightings from 10/20: over 1500 WHITE IBIS roosting at Lake Martin in St Martin Parish; SWAINSON'S THRUSH in St Gabriel; a MERLIN in New Orleans; and 450 CHIMNEY SWIFTS and several LECONTE'S SPARROWS in Caddo Parish. And sometime around the 20th, a BALD EAGLE and a SCISSOR-TAILED FLYCATCHER along River Road in Baton Rouge. Thanks for calling the Baton Rouge rare bird alert and good birding. Compiler: Karen Fay Home phone # : 225-763-6805 RBA phone # : 225-768-9874 Email address: lamskite@aol.com RARE BIRD ALERT ARCHIVE