February 2021

Front Cover: February 2021

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:17:00 GMT

Avery Whitlock is a freelance illustrator based in Massachusetts. She is a Brookline Bird Club featured artist, a volunteer bird banding assistant, and a parent to two boisterous finches. Avery is largely inspired by the illustrations of Louis Agassiz Fuertes, and aims to depict birds with realism and an essence of their character.

To see more of Avery’s illustrations, go to <www.averywhitlockart.com/birds>

Hot Birds: February 2021

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:16:00 GMT

Bullock’s Oriole came east in numbers this fall and winter. The first and longest-staying arrived at the feeders of Ellen Freda and Steven Magnell in Cohasset on November 2, appeared for the Quincy CBC, and has stayed on through press time in mid-January. In Seekonk on November 8, Natalie Gruppuso encountered two orioles eating crabapples together and photographed one of them. The third showed up at Amie Holen’s feeders in Haverhill December 4–14. Richard Littauer took the photo above.

The first Boreal Chickadees to irrupt into Massachusetts this autumn were uncooperative. Two reported in early November were seen briefly and not photographed. However, a friendlier one appeared in Wellfleet on December 7—only the second found on Cape Cod—and returned to the feeders of Christine and Alan Hight for the next two days. The most recent, visiting Lori van Handel’s feeders in Williamstown on December 29, has stayed over two weeks later up through press time. Peter Johnson-Staub took the photo above.

Birding Burlington, Vermont, along the Island Line Trail

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:15:00 GMT

The city of Burlington, Vermont, is bordered by Lake Champlain to the west and Vermont’s highest peak, Mount Mansfield, to the east. To the north lie the Champlain Islands and the Canadian border, and to the south, the rich agricultural lands of the Champlain Valley. The Burlington area and all birding locations described in this article are located on the traditional and unceded territory of the Abenaki Nation and People. As visitors on the land of the Abenaki People, all are encouraged to pay their respects to them, to the wisdom of their elders, and to their culture.

A confluence of birds, wildlife, lands, and people, Burlington has a robust ornithological history spurred on by an active community of longtime local birders and an ever-present group of budding ornithologists and nature-minded students at the University of Vermont. Professors at the Rubenstein School of the Environment and Natural Resources, including but not limited to Allan Strong, Trish O’Kane, and Michael McDonald, are the driving force behind the birding energy that radiates from this campus; they often can be found with binoculars slung over their shoulders and a group of students in tow. As one of those students, I spent several years getting to know the best birding locations within walking, biking, and driving distance of the campus.

Many of the best birding spots in the Burlington area can be accessed along a biking and walking path along the shore of Lake Champlain called the Island Line Trail, so bring your bike or sturdy hiking shoes. Most of this article focuses on birding this trail by bike or on foot. I include several parking areas where drivers can access the bike trail and walk to the hotspots from there. Before exploring the Island Line Trail, I include two locations where you will drive: Centennial Woods Natural Area near the University of Vermont’s campus, then Red Rocks Park, along the shore of Lake Champlain.

Map of Burlington, Vermont.

Observations from Several Months Spent on the Island of Tuckernuck in 2020

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:14:00 GMT

The Gray Heron, originally found on September 5 on Tuckernuck, was subsequently refound the next day by a small party of observers on nearby Muskeget. All photographs by the author.

Tuckernuck is a privately-owned, low-lying island just a stone’s throw away from the “faraway” land of Nantucket, 28 miles southeast of mainland Massachusetts. A few kilometers north of Tuckernuck lies Muskeget Island, a remote slump of sand with a well-documented breeding history of gulls, terns, skimmers, and ducks written and catalogued by Wetherbee, Forbush, Mackay, and Snow, among others. Renowned naturalist Skip Lazell called Tuckernuck “surely the most remarkable bit of land along our entire Atlantic coast.” (Lazell 1976, p. 36) Various organizations, including the Nature Conservancy and the town of Nantucket, have assumed responsibility for the endangered Roseate Terns that nest there, and actively work to combat the ongoing threats that other avian inhabitants and visiting humans pose toward these birds. Farther still, across the Muskeget Channel, the island of Chappaquiddick can be seen on clear days from Bigelow’s Point or North Head on Tuckernuck, and often Cape Poge Lighthouse is visible as well. Nantucket Sound protects this broken archipelago from mammalian predators such as raccoon and otter as well as more sedentary raptors like Barred and Screech owls, all of which are unreported or absent here.

Second Report of the Rhode Island Avian Records Committee

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:13:00 GMT

Little Stint, Charlestown Breachway, Washington, July 4, 2012. © Carlos Pedro.

The current report describes the Committee’s evaluation of 224 records from 1998 to 2015, involving 80 species, plus the species pair Rufous/Allen’s Hummingbird. We extend our deepest appreciation to Richard Ferren and Christopher Raithel for their hard work and expertise on behalf of the Committee, and we welcome Paul L’Etoile and Peter Paton.

Highlights of this multi-year compendium include eight additions to the state list: Trumpeter Swan, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Calliope Hummingbird, Wood Sandpiper, Little Stint, Band-rumped Storm-Petrel, Zone-tailed Hawk, and Swainson’s Warbler. Also notable are two additions to the list of species documented to breed in Rhode Island: Black Vulture and Yellow-bellied Sapsucker.

The Committee recognizes its indebtedness to the birders of Rhode Island and gratefully acknowledges their contributions of written descriptions, photographs, and other kinds of information concerning unusual birds in the Ocean State. Reports are always welcome, even long after an observation, but reports prepared promptly after an observation tend to be more detailed and more reliable. Guidelines for preparation of reports are presented at our website. A report should express clearly who saw the bird, where and when it was seen, exactly what features were observed and which of these were regarded as diagnostic, whether photographs, audio recordings, or drawings document the observation, and how similar species were ruled out. Although the Committee welcomes reports in any format, Microsoft Word documents and jpeg images are the most convenient and can be sent to Doug Wilson, Secretary of RIARC, at Secretary@RI-AvianRecords.org.

Unlike the first report (Mitra et al. 2010), which was organized by year of occurrence, the current report is organized by species in the following format:

Common name (Scientific name) (a, b, c)
RIARC Record Number (RIARC Committee members vote: Accepted-Not Accepted-Natural Status Uncertain), # of birds reported; location; date(s); reporters (I = initial observer, R = report submitted, P = photograph submitted).

The definitions of the numbers in parentheses following the species names are as follows:

a the number of historical records accepted for the period 1900–2002. This number is derived principally from the Checklist of Rhode Island Birds (RIOC 2002), which represents a synthesis of information from Ferren (in litt.), Conway (1992), and records accepted by a pre-RIARC committee of reviewers for Field Notes of Rhode Island Birds through 2002 (Raithel 2001, 2002). The historical totals are imprecise but presented here to summarize each species’s history of occurrence in Rhode Island. A “++” is used to represent relatively frequent historical occurrence where it is not possible to estimate the total number of records.

b the number of accepted records from 2003 to 2007, including those published in the first report of the RIARC (Mitra et al. 2010), plus additional records from this period published here. None of these records pertains to 1900–2002.

c additional accepted records published in the current report from 2008 to 2015. Records published here but dating from 1900 to 2002, or from 2003 to 2007, are counted under categories “a” or “b,” above. Thus, the sum of these three numbers represents the total number of accepted records from 1900 to 2015.

Musings from the Blind Birder: Finding One's Place

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:11:00 GMT

Common Yellowthroat. Photograph by Sandy Selesky.

Think of all the times that you bird a particular location, be it your own property or a favored birding haunt, and see, year after year, a species return to its breeding area. A Common Yellowthroat, for example, shows up annually in our Vermont yard, often singing in the early morning from a specific thicket, and has been doing so for well over a decade. It seems likely that some individuals returned for consecutive years. Still, it is also clear that many individuals occupied this territory in succession, somehow choosing to sing from the same thicket as their predecessors.

Field Notes: Use of Sapsucker Wells by Passerines

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:10:00 GMT

Figure 1. Immature Yellow-bellied Sapsucker excavates and drinks from wells. Photographs by David Larson.

In October 2018, we observed an immature Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius) excavating and drinking from wells in a gray birch (Betula populifolia) next to the boardwalk on the Hellcat Interpretative Trail at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, Rowley, Massachusetts (Figure 1). We observed this bird for a half hour and watched it defend its sap wells against the intrusion of another immature sapsucker. On that day, we also noticed a Black-throated Blue Warbler (Setophaga caerulescens) and at least one Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) in the general area.

Field Notes: Shallow-Water Foraging Behavior by Double-crested Cormorants

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:09:00 GMT

Figure 1. The foraging cormorant, moving left, has its head and body nearly submerged. Photographs by the author.

On April 7, 2020, I was watching Double-crested Cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus) forage near the dock at our rental house at 1455 Long Beach Drive, Big Pine Key, Florida, and noticed shallow-water foraging behavior that I had not seen before. As low tide approached, a rocky, algae-covered substrate emerged around the dock, the usual resting place for 20–30 cormorants. I noticed that as low tide approached, cormorants would swim in very shallow water along the edges of the emergent substrate with their heads and bodies nearly submerged.

About Books: An Owl Like a Beautiful Thought

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:08:00 GMT

Owls of the Eastern Ice: A Quest to Find and Save the World’s Largest Owl. Jonathan C. Slaght. 2020. New York, New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

For me, fish owls were like a beautiful thought I couldn’t quite articulate. They evoked the same wondrous longing as some distant place I’d always wanted to visit but didn’t really know much about. I pondered fish owls and felt cool from the canopy shadows they hid in and smelled moss clinging to riverside stones. (p. 4 Owls of the Eastern Ice)

It is not a stretch to say that any day you see an owl is a good day. Even spotting a common owl such as a Great Horned or Eastern Screech makes us catch our breath. Part of the reason for an owl’s oversized charisma quotient is that we do not see them that often because most species are nocturnal. But their nocturnal habits cannot be the sole reason for our deep fascination with owls. Since Ancient Greece and Egypt, owls have been the subject of countless myths, stories, and beliefs of cultures around the world. They have been seen as symbols of wisdom, drunkenness, silliness, harbingers of death, evil spirits, and thanks to the Harry Potter novels, as magical mailmen. So popular are owls in Massachusetts today that birding websites refuse to post the location of a roosting owl of any species lest throngs of birders and photographers harass the bird.

Some of my most memorable birding experiences have to do with seeing an owl. Once, while birding the Wyoming Rockies several decades back, we came across a large open field in dense forest as the sun set. In the gloaming, a large herd of elk emerged from the forest opposite us, and a male began to bugle loudly. Just then, a Great Gray Owl perched high in a tree near the elk. It was as if a part of the forest suddenly coalesced and became the owl. After about five minutes, the Great Gray made a long, low, totally silent flight across the field and vanished. We just stood there, mouths open. We never saw that bird again, even though we returned to that field the next evening. I am sure all of you have had encounters with owls as memorable.

Bird Sightings: September–October 2020

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:06:00 GMT

September’s weather was as good as it gets with comfortable temperatures, dry air, and lots of sunshine. Labor Day weekend saw the mercury hit the mid-70s, perfect for birding. The first frost advisory was issued on September 20 for much of our area—though not in Boston—and marked the first unseasonably cool weather of late summer and early autumn. Hurricane Teddy passed well to the east of Massachusetts on September 22 but still had an impact on coastal communities producing very high seas in Bristol, Dukes, and Nantucket counties. Strong winds up to 72 miles per hour were noted on the last day of the month, resulting in many downed trees and widespread power outages.

CONNECTICUT WARBLER BY NEIL DOWLING

Bygone Birds: Historical Highlights for September-October

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:05:00 GMT

5 YEARS AGO

September–October 2015

A Brown Booby continued off outer Cape Cod throughout the period, and an adult Brown Pelican was on Nantucket on September 2. Inland, an immature Brown Pelican was found malnourished in Southborough and was rescued on September 21. A Purple Gallinule was at the Westboro WMA on October 21–23. An American Avocet spent two days in Edgartown in mid-September. Two adult Sabine’s Gulls were reported off Provincetown on September 12. The following day, an observer on Tuckernuck Island photographed a Bridled Tern. Great Barrington hosted a Rufous Hummingbird on October 11. Western flycatchers were well represented with nine Western Kingbirds and at least two Say’s Phoebes. Single Bell’s Vireos were reported from Newbury and Eastham, and another one was banded at Manomet. A Northern Wheatear spent the first six days of October at Wachusett Reservoir. A Green-tailed Towhee was a one-day wonder at Hatfield on October 27.

Best sighting: Masked Booby, West Atlantis Canyon, 90 miles south of Nantucket, September 10. This represents the first record for Massachusetts.

10 YEARS AGO

September–October 2010

A Barnacle Goose was in Acton and Concord from October 20 into mid-December. An adult Sharp-tailed Sandpiper was photographed on South Beach, Chatham on October 9, a week after one was reported from nearby Minimoy Island. Prior to this, there had been only three records of this species, the last in Newburyport on October 15, 1989. A Curlew Sandpiper delighted many by spending three weeks on Plum Island in October. A Gull-billed Tern divided its time between Plum Island and Ipswich for a week in mid-September. A largely silent Tropical/Couch’s Kingbird continued in Falmouth to November 2 yet failed to be identified to species. The Plum Island Scissor-tailed Flycatcher disappeared just days short of a 3-month stay. Another was seen at Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard on October 27. A Bell’s Vireo, the fourth state record, was found in Nahant on October 17–18. Warbler highlights were two Black-throated Gray Warblers (Middlesex Fells and Martha’s Vineyard), and a Swainson’s Warbler banded in Brewster, only the fourth record for the state. Great Meadows NWR hosted three species of Ammodramus sparrows (LeConte’s, Grasshopper and Nelson’s).

Best sighting: a juvenile Common Ringed Plover, South Beach, Chatham, on September 11. This represents the second record for the state after a bird seen on September 5, 1990, on nearby North Monomoy Island.

At a Glance: December 2020 Revealed

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:04:00 GMT

CARL GOODRICH

December is a month when many birds regularly begin coming to backyard bird feeders, so it is a good season to keep a sharp eye on your feeders. It is also the season when unexpected visitors may occasionally appear among the more regular feeder clientele. With this in mind, a careful look at the background in this issue’s mystery photograph shows the mystery bird on the ground and surrounded by bird seed—a good clue that the bird was photographed at a feeder.

At a Glance: February 2021

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:03:00 GMT

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Zaps: 49-1

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:02:00 GMT

MassWildlife

Over 2,000 acres of wildlife lands permanently conserved

Major land conservation project opens up new access for outdoor recreation and protects critical wildlife habitat.

In December, MassWildlife acquired a 2,038-acre conservation restriction in Shutesbury, Pelham, and Leverett. The property will continue to be owned and maintained by W.D. Cowls, Inc. of North Amherst as a sustainable working forest. The conservation restriction, sometimes called a conservation easement, permanently protects the property which is made up of several large forested parcels. The acquisition will conserve critical wildlife habitat, safeguard water resources, and ensure continued public access to the property for hunting, fishing, hiking, wildlife watching, and other outdoor recreation. This major land protection project was made possible through a partnership with the Department of Fish and Game, Kestrel Land Trust, W.D. Cowls, and the federal Forest Legacy Program.

More than 95 percent of the Walter Cowls Jones Working Forest, as the property will be called, is identified as Core Habitat or Critical Natural Landscape by MassWildlife’s Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program and is essential for ensuring the long-term survival of rare and common wildlife. Two reptiles listed under the Massachusetts Endangered Species Act will benefit from the conservation of this property, as will forest birds like the Scarlet Tanager, Blackburnian Warbler, and Canada Warbler. Visitors may also find common wildlife on the property, such as white-tailed deer, Wild Turkey, porcupine, snowshoe hare, and Ruffed Grouse. This sizeable land acquisition benefits mammals with large home ranges such as black bear, moose, and bobcats. The area also includes headwater tributaries that are valuable habitat to coldwater aquatic wildlife.

Protecting this large block of forested lands will help sequester and store carbon and help mitigate climate change. Parts of the property are near other conserved lands including the Quabbin Reservation, Town of Amherst watershed land, Montague Plains Wildlife Management Area, and the Paul C. Jones Working Forest. Connecting large blocks of wildlife habitat provides plants and animals improved ability to adapt to changing climate conditions. The acquisition adds to the more than 220,00 acres of MassWildlife’s Wildlife Management Areas and Wildlife Conservation Easements conserved statewide.

Discover MassWildlife lands near you: <https://www.mass.gov/how-to/masswildlife-lands-viewer>.

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Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:01:00 GMT