The absolute top bird of the summer was a Cape Verde Shearwater spotted by a small pelagic birding excursion off of Chatham. This was only the second accepted record for all of North America, and the first for Massachusetts. A few other records, including one from Massachusetts, are suspected to be this species but not confirmed. Ian Davies took the photo above. See the full story on page 324 of this issue.
The Brookline Bird Club overnight pelagic trips frequently bring back astounding reports, and this summer was no exception. The rarest species seen this summer was a Black-capped Petrel, though it was overshadowed by the mind-blowing, unprecedented numbers of White-faced Storm-Petrels whose numbers exceeded 400 individuals at just one stop during the trip. John Oshlick took the photo above.
Ted Gilliland spotted a Franklin’s Gull, apparently Hampden County’s second record of the species, on a small island in the Connecticut River near Longmeadow. It was not reported again from Massachusetts, but another report came in from northeastern Connecticut three days later and about 35 miles away. Ted took the photo above.
One Loggerhead Shrike is a rare occurrence in Massachusetts. So far, 2022 has brought two to the state. Bill Lafley encountered one at Orange Airport, roughly 30 miles west and six weeks after Jon Skinner found one at Fitchburg Airport (featured in our last issue). Bill took the photo above.
As in recent years, this summer featured Brown Pelican sightings from several places. Reports came from at least four towns on outer Cape Cod, the two farthest-apart corners of Nantucket, and from the Massachusetts mainland, at Scituate. Joey Negreann took the photo above.
White Ibis may not remain on Massachusetts’s review list much longer after more summers like this one. The species was reported from at least five places around the state. Perhaps the most surprising was in Williamstown, where birders conducting a Common Nighthawk migration count added an unexpected bonus to their tally. Other ibises appeared in Quincy, Cohasset/Scituate, Concord, and Newburyport. David Swain took the photo above.