Bygone Birds: Historical Highlights for September-October Neil Hayward February 1, 2022 2 MIN READ Bygone Birds September–October 2016 Rufous Hummingbirds were confirmed in Westborough and Andover in October. The Brookline Bird Club pelagic trip on September 24 produced three White-faced Storm-Petrels, three Audubon’s Shearwaters, and a South Polar Skua. A Yellow-nosed Albatross was seen at First Encounter Beach in Eastham on October 10 and again on October 14. A rare inland American White Pelican was photographed at The Oxbow in Northampton on September 15, and three days later at Longmeadow. A Yellow Rail was observed by many at Fort Hill in Eastham on October 29–31. Also present was a Bell’s Vireo. A Harris’s Sparrow was found at Westborough WMA at the end of October. A Northern Wheatear was a one-day wonder in Sandwich on September 13 and a Townsend’s Solitaire was photographed on Plum Island on October 18. A Black-throated Gray Warbler was in Aquinnah on October 8. Best sighting: a Gray Kingbird—the second record for the state—was seen by many at Ocean Avenue Beach in Hyannis, October 23–November 2. 10 YEARS AGO September–October 2011 A Pink-footed Goose at Turners Falls at the end of October was a first for western Massachusetts. Female Rufous Hummingbirds were visiting feeders in Wareham and Lunenberg. Both were banded and stayed throughout the period. The Nantucket Birding Festival scored a Magnificent Frigatebird, which was observed flying over the town dock. A Brown Booby spent the reporting period in Provincetown and a Brown Pelican continued on Cuttyhunk until September 6. A White Ibis was viewed by many in the Newbury area on September 4. Shorebird highlights in September included a Wilson’s Plover on South Beach, Chatham, and a Curlew Sandpiper on Plum Island. Gull-billed Terns were reported from Plum Island and Provincetown. Flycatchers included a pair of Ash-throated Flycatchers on Plum Island, three Western Kingbirds, and a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher on Nantucket. Townsend’s Solitaires were found on Nantucket and in Chatham. Two Northern Wheatears were reported from Hull and Nantucket. Other passerine vagrants included a MacGillivray’s Warbler in Squantum, a Lark Bunting in Gloucester, a Western Tanager in Dorchester, and Yellow-headed Blackbirds in Revere and East Boston. Best sighting: a Yellow-green Vireo was banded on Plum Island on September 5. This was a first record for Massachusetts, and the first record of this species on the East Coast north of Florida. To view the rest of the article you'll need to subscribe. Bird Observer publishes original articles on birding locations, on avian populations and natural history, on regional rarities, field notes, field records, photographs, and art work.