The big excitement for July is the documentation of the First North American Record Pearl Kite in a desert area of California, far from its normal range that is centered in Brazil but extends as far north as Nicaragua! Of course, this Pearl Kite also establishes a First State Record as did a Willow Ptarmigan photographed in Pennsylvania, and a First Territorial Record Sage Thrasher was documented in the northern Yukon. There are many other exciting rare birds to report, with standouts including a Second State Record Red-footed Booby in Maryland and a Third State Record Baikal Teal in Hawaii.
NORTH AMERICAN RECORD
First North American Record Pearl Kite – near Palmdale, California
STATE & PROVINCIAL RECORDS
First State Record Pearl Kite – near Palmdale, California
First State Record Willow Ptarmigan – Presque Isle, Pennsylvania
First Territorial Record Sage Thrasher – Qikiqtaruk (Herschel Island), Yukon
Second Territorial Record Oriental Turtle Dove – Watson Lake, Yukon
Second State Record Red-footed Booby – offshore Thomas Point, Maryland
Second State Record Brown-headed Nuthatch – Pennsylvania
Third State Record Baikal Teal – Honolulu, Hawaii
Sixth State Record Band-rumped Storm Petrel – Glasgow, Kentucky
Sixth State Record Arctic Tern – Saylorville, Iowa
Sixth State Record Prairie Warbler – Emigrant, Montana
Seventh Provincial Record White Ibis – Glace Bay, Nova Scotia
Seventh Provincial Record Black-throated Sparrow – near Medicine Hat, Alberta
Tenth Provincial Record Hooded Warbler – Vancouver, British Columbia
REALLY RARE BIRDS
Bar-tailed Godwit – North Carolina
Cocos Booby – near Galiano Island, British Columbia
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher – Baccaro, Nova Scotia
Crested Caracara – Tyndall, South Dakota
Purple Gallinule – Wichita, Kansas
Franklin's Gull – Charlestown, Rhode Island
Alder Flycatcher – northeast, Washington
Snail Kite – Altamaha Refuge, Georgia
Hooded Oriole – Estes Park, Colorado
CONTINUING REALLY RARE BIRDS
Steller's Sea Eagle – Newfoundland
Mottled Owl – Texas
Falcated Duck – Alaska
Taiga Bean-Goose – British Columbia
Kelp Gull – Wisconsin
Flame-colored Tanager – Arizona
For more information, you can refer to the American Birding Association's Rare Bird Alert at Rare Bird Alert: July 3, 2026 - American Birding Association. Special Thanks to the ABA for permitting us to use the Rare Bird Alert as the basis to prepare this replay.
You can often find more information about individual rare bird sightings from the ABA regional and state rare bird alert listserves that you can access at Birding News brought to you by American Birding Association - (aba.org) or at ABA Rare Bird Alert | Facebook.