Friday, February 25, 2011

4 Sparrow Marsh Cornell Ebird records and the NYSDEC threatened specis list

Below is the cross check of species on the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation list of  Species of Greatest Conservation (SGCN)need ( Endangered, or Threatened, or Special Concern ) with Cornell's Ebird records entered by Brooklyn birders  from the last several years. I counted at least 9 SGCN species. Follow the color code.

(Note: the Ebird records is only the first sighting, not possible to list here what has been seen again afterwards , therefore there are more records )

Here's what been seen the last several years//Those species in RED BOLD are Endangered species; Orange are threatened ; or Bright Blue are special concern under the NYSDEC listing ( source : http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7494.html


Red= Endangered


Orange = Threatened


Bright Blue= Special Concern


Sightings, 2000-2011 Species # Observer Location Date

1 Brant 33 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

2 Canada Goose 10 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

3 Mute Swan 3 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 27, 2008

4 Gadwall 5 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Feb 21, 2009

5 American Black Duck 2 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

6 Mallard 2 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

7 Green-winged Teal 2 Heydi Lopes Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 28, 2010

8 Bufflehead 12 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Nov 22, 2008

9 Hooded Merganser 2 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

10 Red-breasted Merganser 7 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Feb 21, 2009

11 Double-crested Cormorant 1 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

12 Great Cormorant 1 Heydi Lopes Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 28, 2010

13 Great Blue Heron 3 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 27, 2008

14 Great Egret 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

15 Snowy Egret 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

16 Little Blue Heron 1 Heydi Lopes Four Sparrow Marsh (map) May 20, 2009

17 Tricolored Heron 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 27, 2008

18 Green Heron X Doug Gochfeld Four Sparrow Marsh (map) May 13, 2006

19 Black-crowned Night-Heron X Doug Gochfeld Four Sparrow Marsh (map) May 13, 2006

20 Yellow-crowned Night-Heron 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

21 Glossy Ibis 6 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Aug 9, 2008

22 Osprey 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Oct 7, 2008

23 Northern Harrier 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Oct 31, 2010

24 Sharp-shinned Hawk 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Sep 21, 2008

25 Cooper's Hawk 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Nov 16, 2009

26 Red-tailed Hawk 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 8, 2009

27 Peregrine Falcon 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Nov 16, 2009

28 Clapper Rail 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Sep 21, 2008

29 Semipalmated Plover 3 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Aug 9, 2008

30 Killdeer 7 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Sep 21, 2008

31 American Oystercatcher X Heydi Lopes Four Sparrow Marsh (map) May 18, 2009

32 Spotted Sandpiper 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

33 Greater Yellowlegs 2 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

34 Willet X Doug Gochfeld Four Sparrow Marsh (map) May 13, 2006

35 Least Sandpiper 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

36 Wilson's Snipe 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Sep 21, 2008

37 American Woodcock 2 Doug Gochfeld Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Dec 3, 2008

38 Laughing Gull 5 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

39 Ring-billed Gull 2 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

40 Herring Gull 5 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

41 Great Black-backed Gull 1 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

gull sp. X Heydi Lopes Four Sparrow Marsh (map) May 18, 2009

42 Least Tern X Doug Gochfeld Four Sparrow Marsh (map) May 13, 2006

43 Common Tern 4 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

44 Forster's Tern 1 Heydi Lopes Four Sparrow Marsh (map) May 20, 2009

45 Black Skimmer 2 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

46 Rock Pigeon X D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

47 Mourning Dove 4 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

48 Monk Parakeet 7 Shane Blodgett Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jan 17, 2011

49 Yellow-billed Cuckoo 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

50 Chimney Swift 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

51 Belted Kingfisher 1 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

52 Downy Woodpecker 2 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Sep 21, 2008

53 Northern Flicker 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 27, 2008

54 Willow Flycatcher 3 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

55 Eastern Phoebe 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Sep 21, 2008

56 Eastern Kingbird 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Aug 9, 2008

57 Warbling Vireo 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) May 23, 2010

58 Blue Jay 8 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Sep 21, 2008

59 American Crow 3 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

60 Fish Crow 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

61 Tree Swallow 2 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

62 Barn Swallow 10 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

63 Black-capped Chickadee 1 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

64 Carolina Wren 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

65 Marsh Wren 2 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

66 Golden-crowned Kinglet 9 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Oct 7, 2008

67 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 3 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Oct 7, 2008

68 American Robin 4 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

69 Gray Catbird 9 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

70 Northern Mockingbird 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

71 Brown Thrasher 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Sep 21, 2008

72 European Starling X D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

73 Cedar Waxwing 4 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

74 Northern Parula 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Oct 7, 2008

75 Yellow Warbler 2 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

76 Yellow-rumped Warbler 100 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Oct 7, 2008

77 Palm Warbler 3 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Sep 21, 2008

78 Northern Waterthrush 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Aug 9, 2008

79 Common Yellowthroat 5 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

80 Eastern Towhee 2 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

81 American Tree Sparrow 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Nov 22, 2008

82 Savannah Sparrow 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Oct 7, 2008

83 Saltmarsh Sparrow 2 Doug Gochfeld Four Sparrow Marsh (map) May 13, 2006

84 Seaside Sparrow 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

85 Song Sparrow 5 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008

86 Swamp Sparrow 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 27, 2008

87 White-throated Sparrow 8 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Oct 7, 2008

88 White-crowned Sparrow 1 Keith Michael Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jan 8, 2010

89 Dark-eyed Junco 2 Doug Gochfeld Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Dec 3, 2008

90 Northern Cardinal 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

91 Bobolink 8 Heydi Lopes Four Sparrow Marsh (map) May 18, 2009

92 Red-winged Blackbird 14 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

93 Common Grackle 3 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

94 Brown-headed Cowbird 2 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

95 Orchard Oriole 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) May 23, 2010

96 Baltimore Oriole 1 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Aug 9, 2008

97 Purple Finch 5 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Oct 31, 2010

98 House Finch 2 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 27, 2008

99 American Goldfinch 2 Tom Preston Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Jul 6, 2008

100 House Sparrow 4 D. Edward Davis Four Sparrow Marsh (map) Mar 25, 2008



©2010 Audubon and Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Thursday, February 17, 2011

House Budget Bill Threatens Bird Conservation Funding and Programs

ABC Conservancy bulletin

To: Bird Conservation Alliance

From: Anne Law, American Bird Conservancy
Date: February 17, 2011

House Budget Bill Threatens Bird Conservation Funding and Programs

The House of Representatives is now debating H.R. 1, the Full Year Continuing Resolution for 2011, with votes taking place throughout last week. The bill includes destructive funding cuts and policy provisions that would severely harm our wildlife and other natural resources.

Your Representative needs to hear from you that you support our nation’s effort to conserve birds. Please call your Representative by calling the Capitol Switchboard at 202/224-3121. Urge them to vote no on H.R. 1 and to vote against the amendments harmful to bird conservation listed below.

State and Tribal Wildlife Grants Program

H.R. 1 zeroes out funding for the State and Tribal Wildlife Grants program which was funded previously at $90 million. The program was created by Congress in 2000 to assist states with their voluntary efforts to protect the more than 12,000 at-risk wildlife species around the United States from becoming endangered. The program leverages more than $100 million per year in state, tribal, local, and private dollars that directly support jobs in virtually all states. Eliminating this program also undermines the federal government’s ten year investment in State Wildlife Action Plans.

North American Wetlands Conservation Fund

H.R. 1 zeroes out funding for the North American Conservation Fund which was funded previously at $47.6 million. Half of the original wetlands in the United States have already been lost. Eliminating funding for this program will exacerbate declines of migratory birds and other fish and wildlife dependent on wetlands. This program has levered over $2 billion in matching funds affecting 20 million acres through the work of more than 4,000 partners and fostered public and private sector cooperation for migratory bird conservation, flood control, erosion control, and water quality. For every dollar of money invested in the program, an average of 3.2 dollars is raised to match the federal share by non-federal entities.

Clean Water Act

H.R. 1 would prohibit the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from implementing, administering, or enforcing a change to a rule or guidance document pertaining to the definitions of waters under the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act (CWA). Recent court decisions have created confusion in the implementation of the CWA, which protects the nation’s waters and wetlands. The proposed language protects the recent loopholes and jeopardizes the EPA’s authority to protect some 20 million acres of wetlands and wildlife habitat from development and degradation.

Other Programs Impacted by H.R. 1:

· Zeroes out the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund authorized under Section 6 of the Endangered Species Act which is the federal government’s primary means to help the states and territories carry out conservation projects to benefit threatened and endangered species.

· Cuts $65 million from the Operations Budget of the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) which had been previously funded at $1.204 billion. This would drastically impact FWS staff from being able to monitor and protect endangered species, and to keep birds and other wildlife populations healthy.

· Cuts funding requested for the Land and Water Conservation Fund to $59 million, an 86 percent from Fiscal Year 2010 enacted levels and the lowest level in its 45 year history. This program provides protection for lands in our national wildlife refuges, parks, forests, and other public lands and also for state conservation of open space and wildlife habitat through a small percentage of oil and drilling receipts. These are not taxpayer dollars.

· Cuts $12 million from the National Wildlife Refuge System which is currently funded at $491 million. This will likely mean the Refuge system will have to cut staff and neglect important restoration and management projects as well as basic facility maintenance.

· A permanent cut of almost 50,000 acres to the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP)

· A cut of over $350 million from the Environmental Quality Assistance Program (EQUIP)

· A cut of $170 million from the USDA National Resource Conservation Service


Amendments to be offered on the House Floor by Members

In addition to the cuts already in H.R. 1, Representatives can also offer amendments on the House floor. Currently there are 583 amendments that have been filed for consideration. Of particular interest to ABC are:

· Amendment 85 offered by Rep. Pompeo would have zeroed out the remaining $7.4 million for the USDA Forest Service International Program which supports an array of effective bird conservation projects;

· Amendment 293 offered by Rep. McClintock that would zero out funding for the Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act grant program, which protects declining bird species found throughout the United States. H.R. 1 funded the program at $4.430 million;

· Amendment 557 by Rep. Gardner would prohibit EPA from regulating any use of any chemical present in hunting or fishing equipment, not just those limited uses. This amendment would take away EPA’s authority to regulate lead bullets and fishing gear.

Currently out of the three amendments listed above the only one that has been considered was Amendment 85 which fortunately was defeated. The House is scheduled to be in session late into tonight and for the rest of this week and are aiming to pass H.R. 1 by the end of this week. Attached is a community sign on letter that ABC signed onto urging House members to oppose all anti-environmental amendments. (Unfortunately due to the sheer number of amendments offer it is not comprehensive.) In addition, also attached is a more detailed spreadsheet description of the anti-environmental riders.

The Senate has already signaled that they will not take up the House bill and have begun work on a Senate version. President Obama has also publicly stated that he will veto the House bill so there will most likely be another short term Continuing Resolution.

If anyone has any additional questions and or concerns please contact me at alaw@abcbirds.org or call 202/234-7181. We will send another update once the bill has passed.

Steve Holmer

Director of the Bird Conservation Alliance &

Senior Policy Advisor
American Bird Conservancy

202/234-7181 ext. 216

sholmer@abcbirds.org









The Bird Conservation Alliance (BCA - www.birdconservationalliance.org) is a network of organizations working together to conserve America's wild birds. BCA is facilitated by American Bird Conservancy (www.abcbirds.org) which conserves native birds and their habitats throughout the Americas by safeguarding the rarest species, conserving and restoring habitats, and reducing threats while building capacity in the bird conservation movement.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Monarch Butterflies on the rebound

A report on Monarch Butterflies numbers rising after past Mexican winter freeze.

http://tinyurl.com/5tht7an

Thursday, February 3, 2011

the postmortem on Arkansas RW Blackbirds

You may have recalled over a month ago, 1000's of Red-winged Blackbirds dropping dead out of the sky in Arkansas. I just happened to see this news item about the cause of death.

http://www.aolnews.com/2011/01/27/scientists-say-blunt-force-trauma-killed-arksanas-blackbirds/

EPCAL destruction delayed for a another few years

This listserve posting from Newsday courtesy of Long Island native and photographer regarding Environmental Park at Calverton (EPCAL) , likely the largest tract of remaining LI grassland is under threat  for development by the town of Riverhead should help and hope galvanize conservation forces in trying to save EPCAL.It is an amazing beautiful spot .

http://birdsoflongisland.blogspot.com/2011/02/epcal-grasslands-safe-for.html

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Why coastal waterfront areas like 4 Sparrow Marsh get overdeveloped.

When waterfront areas get overdeveloped ( like 4 Sparrow Marsh)  , surface runoff of pollutants (like oil spills) spill into Jamaica Bay watershed  exacerbating the already bad nitrogen sewage flow that has been killing off the Jamaica Bay marshes... see this link about rumors regarding a Walmart store that may affect the 4 Sparrow property.Think about it.. all those 10,000's of cars overwhelming Flatbush Ave and the surrounding green habitats..How much can the area take?  With the previous mention of airport expansion and so on, it all adds up to degradation of the bay.

click on

http://action.foodandwaterwatch.org/p/salsa/web/common/public/content?content_item_KEY=8407

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

JFK Airport future runway expansion into Jamaica Bay ?

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/27/nyregion/27airports.html?_r=2



This article from the NY Times ( I hope u can open it ) hypothetically says filling in part of Jamaica Bay to extend a new runway into the Jamaica bay. If not able to open link -- search this article "To Expand, Airports May Need Radical Alterations, Report Says by Patrick Macgeegan

Published: January 26, 2011 "


see excerpt:

Among the alternatives, he said, would be to fill in part of Jamaica Bay and construct a new runway parallel to the existing runway used by the giant trans-Atlantic passenger jets. Getting approval for that option would entail not only overcoming opposition from environmental groups but also changing the federal law that created the Gateway National Recreation Area, which explicitly prohibits expanding the airport into the bay.


The deterioration and slow death of Jamaica Bay marshes by nitrogen sewage and runoff is cumulatively impacted by more coastal development ( like 4 sparrow proposal) with surface runoff of pollutants and oils ,etc ( and I am sure airport runways add in as well...) It all adds up...

Let's just hope the environmentalists coalition is still strong then if this JFK battle looms large.