An especially rare Crane Hawk has been sighted by several birders in the Salineno Wildlife Preserve, establishing both a Second North American Record and Second State Record for Texas (photo by Gary Herritz).

Super-rare birds continue to cross the border in southern Texas, with a Crane Hawk now establishing a Second North American Record and Second State Record in the Salineno area.

A variety of other off-course birds also set new state records, including a Second State Record Brant in Oklahoma, a Third State Record Short-billed Gull in Missouri, a Third State Record Hermit Warbler in Connecticut, a Seventh State Record Short-billed Gull in Connecticut, and an Eighth State Record Gray-crowned Rosy Finch in Wisconsin. For hummingbird fans, 2 Green-breasted Mangos were documented too, 1 in Louisiana and another in south Texas – and there’s more!

NORTH AMERICAN RECORD

Second North American Record Crane Hawk – Salineno, Texas

STATE & PROVINCIAL RECORDS

Second State Record Crane Hawk – Salineno, Texas

Second State Record Brant – Enid, Oklahoma

Third State Record Short-billed Gull – West Alton, Missouri

Third State Record Hermit Warbler – Stonington, Connecticut

Seventh State Record Short-billed Gull – New Haven, Connecticut

Eighth State Record Gray-crowned Rosy Finch – Devil’s Lake, Wisconsin

REALLY RARE BIRDS

Green-breasted Mango – Schriever, Louisiana

Green-breasted Mango – Resaca de la Palma, Texas

Fieldfare – Saint-Joseph-de-la-Rive, Quebec

White Wagtail – Costa Mesa, California

Crested Caracara – Prince Edward Island

Crested Caracara – Point Arena area, California

Brown Booby – Gulf Shores, Alabama

Western Meadowlark – Sandy Hook, New Jersey

CONTINUING REALLY RARE BIRDS

Bare-throated Tiger Heron – Texas

Mottled Owl – Texas

Red-flanked Bluetail – New Jersey

Gray-collared Becard – Texas

Roadside Hawks – Texas

American Flamingos – Florida

Fan-tailed Warbler – Texas

Brown Jays – Texas

Golden-crowned Warblers – Texas

Crimson-collared Grosbeak –Texas

Cattle Tyrant – Texas

Nutting’s Flycatcher – New Mexico

Gray Heron – Nova Scotia

For more information, you can refer to the American Birding Association’s Rare Bird Alert at Rare Bird Alert; February 2, 2024 - American Birding Association (aba.org) to the ABA, and Nate Swick, who does a great job of compiling the ABA’s Rare Bird Alert, which we use to prepare this weekly replay.

You can often find more info about individual rare bird sightings from the ABA 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