This has been a long-awaited post to my blog. Back in October 2023 I was notified that an Allen’s Hummingbird had been coming to a home in Riverhead Long Island for the last several days. I was put in touch with the homeowner who invited me to her home to see the bird. The bird had already been seen by a number of New Yorks outstanding birders and photos had been sent to Sherri Williamson in Arizona for her expertise in identification with all hummingbirds. She detailed all the reasons that the bird was an immature female Allen’s Hummingbird, a first record for New York State! The situation was such that there couldn’t be too many people come to the home to see the bird so a system was set up with the homeowner extending invitations to birders as she was able to accommodate them. Marybeth is a wonderful bird enthusiast who was so generous to so many during the birds stay. I can’t thank her enough for her hospitality! Here are a few photos of the bird that unfortunately aren’t enough to confirm it as an Allen’s. Fortunately, many excellent photos were obtained of her rump and rectrices which confirm her to be an Allen’s. I suggest you check out the many excellent report that will surface in ebird in the near future that show the extremely thin outer rectrices (#5) on each side of the tail which are diagnostic to the species. There are several other more subtle features that Sherri was able to point out that indicate Allen’s which will also be noted in at least some of the reports.
Bashakill Birder 
That’s exciting!