Louisiana Rare Bird Alert Tuesday, 28 September 1999 Baton Rouge Audubon Society Rare Bird Alert Area: Baton Rouge and Louisiana statewide Highlights: BUFF-BELLIED HUMMINGBIRD LOGGERHEAD KINGBIRD (not on the state list) CLAY-COLORED SPARROW   others birds mentioned: others birds mentioned: greater shearwater *(*Louisiana State Review List) magnificent frigatebird american white pelican fulvous whistling-duck canvasback lesser scaup reddish egret cattle egret roseate spoonbill osprey swainson's hawk merlin peregrine falcon king rail common snipe hudsonian godwit western sandpiper least sandpiper white-rumped sandpiper stilt sandpiper buff-breasted sandpiper lesser black-backed gull black tern caspian tern common tern inca dove chuck-will's-widow whip-poor-will chimney swift rufous hummingbird acadian flycatcher least flycatcher eastern phoebe western kingbird scissor-tailed flycatcher gray-cheeked thrush wood thrush gray catbird red-breasted nuthatch marsh wren sedge wren winter wren house wren cliff swallow ruby-crowned kinglet tufted titmouse tennessee warbler prairie warbler palm warbler mourning warbler common yellowthroat wilson's warbler canada warbler lark sparrow dickcissel rose-breasted grosbeak blue grosbeak Transcript:   Welcome birders to the BRAS' rare bird alert. The following was recorded on Tuesday September 28. Highlights include a CLAY-COLORED SPARROW in Shreveport, a LOGGERHEAD KINGBIRD out in the Gulf and a BUFF-BELLIED HUMMINGBIRD in LaPlace.   A CLAY-COLORED SPARROW was found in Shreveport on 9/24 on the southern dead end of Well's Island Rd. Take Clyde Fant Pkwy out of downtown Shreveport north to its dead end. Take a right on Airport Dr, which becomes Well's Island Rd past the airport and dead ends at a large overgrown field. The bird was in the north end of the field in tall grass and ragweed. It could not be found on the morning of 9/25.   Even though the report is a bit late, I thought I would mention the report of a LOGGERHEAD KINGBIRD, seen on 9/12 out on an oil platform off the southwest coast. The observer has reviewed museum specimens and has submitted convincing details to the LSU Museum of Natural Sciences, which helps to oversee this interesting trans-gulf migration project.   A male BUFF-BELLIED HUMMINGBIRD, that has been recorded in LaPlace for at least the last 7 winters, has returned on August 6 to 800 Fagot Loop in LaPlace. From Airline Hwy in LaPlace, turn south on Elm Street by the Billy Hart Restaurant. Fagot Loop is the first intersection. The house is on the NW corner of Elm and Fagot Loop. He often hangs out in the red cedar tree in the backyard.   Interesting sightings: 9/28 Caddo Parish: a PALM WARBLER in the southern part of the parish.   9/26 Orleans: 1 TUFTED TITMOUSE and 3 WILSON'S WARBLERS in New Orleans; and 2350 WESTERN, 2700 LEAST, 2 WHITE-RUMPED and 160 STILT SANDPIPERS at Recovery One in New Orleans East.   9/25 Caddo: 49 CHIMNEY SWIFTS and 13 HOUSE WRENS along Well's Island Rd; 2 TENNESSEE WARBLERS at the Stoner launch woods, both in Shreveport; and 3 OSPREYS, 2 adult COMMON TERNS and 2 CLIFF SWALLOWS on Cross Lake.   Calcasieu: an adult male RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD noted for the first time in a yard in Lake Charles (possible returnee).   Cameron: over 100 ROSEATE SPOONBILLS, 1 MERLIN and 1 COMMON SNIPE at Sabine NWR; 1 CHUCK-WILL'S WIDOW, 1 ACADIAN and several LEAST FLYCATCHERS, 1 RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET, 1 WILSON'S WARBLER and 1 LARK SPARROW at Peveto Woods; 1 WESTERN KINGBIRD on LA 82 between Peveto and Johnson Bayou; 1 MERLIN, 1 SNIPE and 1 HUDSONIAN GODWIT at Johnson Bayou; 3 MAGNIFICENT FRIGATEBIRDS, 1 white morph REDDISH EGRET, 1 KING RAIL and 50 BLACK TERNS at East Jetty in the town of Cameron; 3 CHUCK-WILL'S WIDOWS, several LEAST FLYCATCHERS, 1 MOURNING and 1 CANADA WARBLER at Willow Island near Oak Grove; 1 PEREGRINE FALCON, 9 BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPERS and 1 LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL at Rutherford Beach; 3 FULVOUS WHISTLING-DUCKS at the Gibbstown bridge on LA 27 east; and over 500 CASPIAN TERNS on beaches parish wide.   Gulf of Mexico: a GREATER SHEARWATER seen from an oil platform off the south-central coast; and an INCA DOVE on a platform off the southeast coast.   9/24 Caddo: 1 WOOD THRUSH at the Stoner launch woods and 15 GRAY CATBIRDS, 1 SEDGE WREN and 27 COMMON YELLOWTHROATS at the southern end of Well's Island Rd.   Lafayette: a banded BUFF-BELLIED HUMMINGBIRD returned to a yard in Lafayette.   East Baton Rouge: an immature male RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD in a yard in Baton Rouge; and 100-125 BLUE GROSBEAKS coming to a drainage canal behind a yard in Baton Rouge.   Jefferson: at least 3 RUFOUS in a yard in Metairie.   9/23 Tangipahoa: a WINTER WREN in Hammond.   Orleans: 1 PRAIRIE WARBLER and 7 DICKCISSELS at Recovery One in New Orleans East.   9/22 Caddo: 175 AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS in the southern part of the parish; and 1 EASTERN PHOEBE and 1 RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET at the Stoner launch woods; and 1 female CANVASBACK, 1 LESSER SCAUP, 975 roosting CATTLE EGRETS and 130 FISH CROWS on Cross Lake.   Vermilion: a pair of RED-BREASTED NUTHATCHES in a yard south of Abbeville.   Iberville: a MARSH WREN, a GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH, a DICKCISSEL and a ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK in a yard in St Gabriel.   St John the Baptist: a SWAINSON'S HAWK migrating over Reserve.   Orleans: a WHIP-POOR-WILL and PALM WARBLERS at City Park in New Orleans.   9/21 Caddo: a first fall male ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK at the Stoner launch woods; a PHOEBE, 2 SEDGE WRENS and 14 YELLOWTHROATS at the edge of the Red River on Well's Island Rd.   Bossier: 27 SCISSOR-TAILED FLYCATCHERS and 1 SEDGE WREN on Old Brownlee Rd. Thanks for calling the Baton Rouge rare bird alert and good birding. © D.J. L'Hoste Compiler: Karen Fay Home phone # : 225-763-6805 RBA phone # : 225-768-9874 Email address: lamskite@aol.com RARE BIRD ALERT ARCHIVE