ANNUAL REPORT 2025

Brookline Bird Club

2025 Statistical and Year-End Report

By David Scott, Club Statistician

The Brookline Bird Club (BBC) recorded 284 species for 2025, with 275 species in Massachusetts (one more than last year) and nine additional species reported from New Hampshire and Maine. These totals were based upon 304 trips for which checklists were submitted, a new record for the club, as well as the out-of-state overnight trips. This represents a significant increase upon last year’s total of 262 trips, itself a club record, and the 200 trips reported in 2023.  

The overnight pelagic trips scheduled for August were cancelled due to Hurricane Erin, but the club rescheduled for September 29-30. Pelagic birds included Barolo Shearwater, Sargasso Shearwater, Long-tailed and Pomarine Jaegers and over 400 Red-necked Phalaropes. Marine wildlife included Sperm, Humpback and Fin Whales, Common, Bottlenose and Risso’s Dolphins, a Leatherback Sea Turtle and several Mola Mola. Perhaps most remarkable of all, however, was the nocturnal spectacle of passerines and other species on their Fall migration, some of which took the opportunity to rest on the boat. After analyzing photos and sound recordings, the club compiled 17 species of warbler including Prothonotary, Connecticut and Hooded, as well as Cliff Swallow, Bobolink, Scarlet Tanager, Indigo Bunting, and an American Bittern which circled the boat a few times. The club has now seen a Prothonotary Warbler at sea in three of the last four years, an achievement that may be unmatched in the history of North American birding.

A December 6 pelagic was also a great success, departing from Hyannis to venture out east of Nantucket and Chatham. We came across a dead Minke Whale, where we had brief looks at a Great Skua, and throughout the trip there were good numbers of Dovekie, Atlantic Puffin, Razorbill, Black-legged Kittiwakes and Northern Fulmars. The trip returned home past Monomoy where we witnessed the great assembly of sea ducks, including an estimated 20,000 Common Eiders, thousands of scoters and hundreds of Northern Gannets. 

There were many other highlights in Massachusetts: Glaucous Gull and Pacific Loon (Race Point, January 1, with another Glaucous Gull at Castle Island on January 12), Short-eared Owl (Newburyport trip, January 1), Western Tanager (Provincetown, January 1), King Eider (Halibut Pt, January 25), Thick-billed Murre (Eastern Point, February 5), Swainson’s Hawk (Good Harbor Beach, February 5), Long-eared Owl (Salisbury, February 22 and March 22), Red-headed Woodpecker (Franklin Park, April 27), Sandhill Crane (Burrage Pond, April 27 and Cumberland Farms, October 26), Hooded Warbler (Mt Auburn, May 13), Seaside Sparrow and Golden-winged Warbler (Allens Pond, June 1), Black-necked Stilt (Plum Island, June 10), Blue Grosbeak (Southwick WMA, July 13), Tricolored Heron (Plum Island, August 20 and September 14), Trumpeter Swan (Delaney WMA, August 24 and September 21), Caspian Tern (Winthrop Beach, September 28), Summer Tanager (Mt Auburn, November 1)

Rarities seen by many birders last year which would have been new for the club included the Monomoy Ferruginous Hawk, the Marshfield Roseate Spoonbill, the Scituate Limpkin, and the Fitchburg Chestnut-collared Longspur.

More common species we missed in Massachusetts included Blue-winged Teal, Black-billed Cuckoo, Redpoll, Black Vulture, Snow Goose, Parasitic Jaeger, Little Blue Heron, Redhead, Vesper Sparrow, Worm-eating Warbler, continuing club nemesis Canvasback (last recorded by us in 2014), Northern Shrike, Philadelphia Vireo and Yellow-breasted Chat.

Outside of Massachusetts, we added Black-backed Woodpecker, Bicknell’s Thrush, Canada Jay, and Boreal Chickadee on the Lake Umbagog trip in New Hampshire. In Maine, we recorded Vesper Sparrow and Black-billed Cuckoo on the way up to Rangeley Lakes and Nelson’s Sparrow, Common Nighthawk and Arctic Tern on the Downeast/Machias trip. 

There were 381 species reported in eBird in 2025 for Massachusetts, of which the club’s total of 275 represented 72 percent. The club reported the most species in Essex County (213), followed by Suffolk (182), Middlesex (170), Plymouth (146), Worcester (142), Norfolk (136), Barnstable (134) and Bristol (102). The total for Suffolk is notable, by far the highest the club has achieved, reflecting the increased number of trips in the Boston area. The previous highest for Suffolk County was 157, in 2001. Our total of 213 in Essex County is about average for the club over the last 10 years, but in the 1980s and 1990s we routinely recorded over 250 species there, with a high of 277 in 1980. Trips to Mt. Auburn Cemetery recorded 113 species this year, including 23 species of warblers. 

The following table shows the trips reporting the most species by month:  

Date                Location                                              Species            Leader 

1/1                   Newburyport & vicinity                    64                    Laura de la Flor / Mark Burns 

2/2                   Scituate to Sandwich                         56                    Glenn d’Entremont / SSBC

3/22                 Newburyport & vicinity                     64                    Laura de la Flor

4/27                 Burrage Pond                                      51                    Ray Bedard

5/3                   South Shore                                        110                  Glenn d’Entremont

6/15                 Housatonic River, October Mtn         71                    Glenn d’Entremont / SSBC

7/12                 Winchenden/Royalston                      63                    Glenn d’Entremont

8/31                 Plum Island                                         54                    Nick Paulson

9/21                 Delaney WMA                                   52                    Cliff Cook

10/4                 Outer Cape Cod                                  80                    Glenn d’Entremont / SSBC

11/2                 NH Seacoast                                       66                    Steve Mirick

12/6                 Nantucket Shoals Pelagic                   39                    Peter Flood, Liam Waters  

The club initiated two Big Days in 2025, aligned with the global efforts of the Cornell Lab. The objective was to find as many species as possible throughout Massachusetts, and to encourage club members to get out birding and share the activity with friends. On May 10, despite some terrible weather, club members recorded 186 species across the state. On October 11 we found 146. We hope to improve on this in 2026!

Thanks to all our trip leaders, especially those who led 10 or more trips in 2025: Cliff Cook, Kathy Dia, Glenn d’Entremont, Linda Ferraresso, Leslie Kramer, Michealle Larkins, Thomas Michel, Nick Paulson, David Scott, and Dave Williams. 

Thanks also to the organizations with whom the club co-sponsors trips. These include Menotomy Bird Club, South Shore Bird Club, Cape Cod Bird Club, the Charles River Esplanade Association, Boston Nature Center, Athol Bird and Nature Club, Boston Birding Festival, Emerald Necklace Conservancy, Brookline GreenSpace Alliance, Mass Audubon, Lowell Parks and Conservation Trust, Boxborough Birders, Dracut Open Space Committee, Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, Franklin Park Coalition, Friends of Belle Isle Marsh, Nasketucket Bird Club, and Paskamansett Bird Club.

Excluding the multi-checklist pelagic trips, there were 454 eBird checklists associated with 301 trips in Massachusetts. American Robin remained the most frequently reported species, appearing on 280 checklists, but was only narrowly ahead of Song Sparrow (278), with Blue Jay (272) in third. Northern Cardinal (246) moved up one place to fourth, with Mallard (243) moving up four places to fifth. Black-capped Chickadee (240) and American Goldfinch (236) remained in sixth and seventh. Mourning Dove (232) dropped four places to eighth. Canada Goose (230) was ninth and Herring Gull (226) was tenth. The next five were Downy Woodpecker (216), Red-winged Blackbird (212), Common Grackle (209), American Crow (188) and Red-bellied Woodpecker (186). 

ANNUAL REPORT 20252026-09-05T15:32:55-04:00

2024 Annual Report

The Brookline Bird Club (BBC) recorded 283 species for 2024, with 274 species in Massachusetts (four more than 2023), and nine additional species reported from New Hampshire and Maine.  This total was based upon 262 trips for which checklists were reported, the highest number in the history of the club, as well as the out-of-state overnight trips.  

The two August pelagic trips visited Hydrographer, Dogbody and Welker Canyons and found a remarkable variety of marine life. This included four species of whales, three species of dolphins, three species of sharks, ocean sunfish and leatherback turtle. One trip even managed to collect a baby sailfish from the sargassum. Bird highlights included White-faced, Band-rumped and Leach’s Storm-Petrels, South Polar Skua, Long-tailed and Pomarine Jaegers, Black-capped Petrel and migrating Red and Red-necked Phalaropes.

Other highlights in Massachusetts included: Dovekie and Common Murre (Race Point, January 1), Western Kingbird (Salt Pond, Eastham, January 1), Long-eared and Short-eared Owls (Newburyport/Salisbury, January 1), Prothonotary Warbler (Mt Auburn, May 1), Northern Goshawk (Westboro WMA, May 6), Chuck-will’s Widow (Charles River Esplanade, May 15), Caspian Tern (Plumbush Marshes, September 11), Scissor-tailed Flycatcher (Ipswich River Audubon, November 16), and Spotted Towhee (Provincetown Airport, November 30).

Outside of Massachusetts, Bicknell’s Thrush, Canada Jay, Ruffed Grouse and Boreal Chickadee were seen on the trip to the Lake Umbagog region in New Hampshire. On the Rangeley Lakes and Downeast trips to Maine, the club recorded Spruce Grouse, Evening Grosbeak, Black Tern, Upland Sandpiper and Nelson’s Sparrow.

Birds we missed in Massachusetts included Redpoll, Snowy Owl, Red Knot, Evening Grosbeak, Dickcissel, Yellow-breasted Chat, Ruffed Grouse, King Eider, Redhead and Canvasback (last reported on a club trip in 2014).

There were 385 species reported in eBird in 2024 for Massachusetts, of which the club’s total of 274 represented 71 percent. The club reported the most species in Essex County (226), followed by Plymouth (165), Middlesex (164), Suffolk (148), Worcester (141), Barnstable (130), Bristol (127), and Norfolk (126). Trips to Mt. Auburn Cemetery recorded 113 species this year, including 29 species of warblers. We missed Blue-winged Warbler at the cemetery but recorded it on 15 other trips.

The following table shows the trips reporting the most species by month: 

DateLocationSpeciesLeader
1/1Newburyport & vicinity51Laura de la Flor / Mark Burns
2/4Scituate to Plymouth62Glenn d’Entremont / SSBC
3/16Newburyport & vicinity58Laura de la Flor
4/29Westboro WMA57Nick paulson
5/4South Shore114Glenn d’Entremont / SSBC
6/16Housatonic River, October Mtn71Glenn d’Entremont / SSBC
7/20Rough Meadows61Davey Walters
8/3Squantum, Quincy53Glenn d’Entremont / SSBC
9/22Delaney WMA55Cliff Cook
10/5Outer Cape Cod70Glenn d’Entremont / SSBC
11/3NH Seacoast74Steve Mirick
12/12Cape Ann38Jim McCoy

Thanks to all our trip leaders, especially those who led 10 or more trips in 2024: Cliff Cook, Kathy Dia, Glenn d’Entremont, Linda Ferraresso, Leslie Kramer, Michealle Larkins, Thomas Michel, Nick Paulson, David Scott, and Dave Williams.

Thanks also to the organizations with whom the club co-sponsors trips. These include the South Shore Bird Club, Cape Cod Bird Club, the Charles River Esplanade Association, Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, Minute Man National Historical Park, and the Franklin Park Coalition.

Excluding the pelagic and overnight out-of-state trips, there were 363 eBird checklists associated with 259 trips. American Robin retained its position as the most frequently reported species, appearing on 261 checklists. Song Sparrow (252) and Blue Jay (248) remained in second and third. Mourning Dove (227) and Northern Cardinal (226) overtook Black-capped Chickadee (222). American Goldfinch (219) was seventh, and Downy Woodpecker (208) moved up two places to eighth. Mallard (209) was ninth and Red-winged Blackbird (193) tenth. The next five were Common Grackle (185), Canada Goose (177), Herring Gull (177), American Crow (174) and Northern Flicker (170).

Download a copy of the 2024 Annual Report.

2024 Annual Report2025-04-28T20:05:55-04:00

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

The Brookline Bird Club (BBC) recorded 275 species for 2023, based upon 200 trips reported from Massachusetts, and those from out of state.  We recorded 267 species in Massachusetts, three more than 2022, with 8 additional species reported from New Hampshire and Maine. 

Due to weather, only one of the two August overnight pelagic trips went out, leaving from Hyannis to visit Veatch, Nantucket and Atlantis Canyons. Highlights included White-faced Storm-Petrel, South Polar Skua, Band-rumped Storm-Petrel, Long-tailed Jaeger, and an impressive 78 Audubon’s Shearwaters. For the second year in a row, the boat lights attracted a migrating Prothonatory Warbler during the night. The November pelagic trip was pushed back into December, but still attracted good participation, and recorded Pomarine Jaeger, Northern Fulmar, and good numbers of wintering ducks, alcids and Black-legged Kittiwakes. 

The club added a new species to its list: Virginia’s Warbler, when Glenn d’Entremont’s trip to the Outer Cape visited Putnam Farm in Orleans on October 8. Other good birds recorded in Massachusetts on (or seen from) shore in 2023 included: Northern Lapwing (Maplecroft Farm, Ipswich, January 1), Red-headed Woodpecker (Appleton Farm, January 1), Dovekie (Cape Ann, January 1), Kentucky Warbler (Cranberry Pond, Hingham, April 29), King Rail (Eastern Pt, Gloucester, May 21), Seaside Sparrow (Allen’s Pond, May 21 and June 4), Sandhill Crane (Cumberland Farms, October 29), Baird’s Sandpiper (Plum Island, September 12), Blue Grosbeak (Putnam Farm, Orleans, October 8), Common Gallinule (Plum Island, November 4), Ash-throated Flycatcher (Halibut Pt, November 4 and December 23), Black Vulture (Fairhaven, November 25).

Outside of Massachusetts, additional species were seen on the trips to the Lake Umbagog region in New Hampshire, and on the Rangeley Lakes trip to Maine. Bicknell’s Thrush, Canada Jay, Philadelphia Vireo, Ruffed Grouse and Yellow-bellied Flycatcher were reported from NH, and Boreal Chickadee, Loggerhead Shrike and Olive-sided Flycatcher were recorded from the Maine trip, which also found Ruffed Grouse, Canada Jay and Yellow-bellied Flycatcher. 

Birds we missed in Massachusetts included Louisiana Waterthrush, Common Redpoll, Rough-legged Hawk, Ruffed Grouse, Snow Goose, Little Blue Heron, Redhead, Evening Grosbeak, Northern Shrike, Canvasback (increasingly a nemesis for the club, last reported in 2014!), Glaucous Gull, Eurasian Wigeon, King Eider and Yellow-breasted Chat.  

There were 376 species reported in eBird in 2023 for Massachusetts, of which the club’s total of 267 represented 71 percent. The club reported the most species in Essex County (213), followed by Middlesex (148), Plymouth (146), Bristol (141), Suffolk (141), Norfolk (123) and Worcester (121). Trips to Mt. Auburn Cemetery recorded 109 species this year, including 24 species of warblers.

The following table shows the trips reporting the most species by month: 

DateLocationSpeciesLeader
1/1Newburyport & Vicinity58Laura de la Flor/Mark Burns
2/5Scituate to Plymouth61Glenn d’Entremont/SSBC
3/2Newburyport & Vicinity55Barbara Volkle
4/29South Shore92Glenn d’Entremont
5/14Eastern Point, Gloucester76Susan Hedman
6/18Housatonic River/October Mountain67Glenn d’Entremont/SSBC
7/15Fruitlands/Harvard49Sandy Oxley/Rita Grossman
8/13Squantum42Glenn d’Entremont/SSBC
9/9Plum Island53Nick Paulson
10/7Plum Island84Nick Paulson
11/4Plum Island67Linda Ferraresso
12/14cape Ann34Matt Sabourin

Thanks to all our trip leaders, especially those who led 10 or more trips in 2023: Cliff Cook, Peter Van Demark, Kathy Dia, Glenn d’Entremont, Linda Ferraresso, Thomas Michel, Nick Paulson, David Scott, and Dave Williams. 

Thanks also to the organizations with whom the club co-sponsors trips. These include the South Shore Bird Club, Cape Cod Bird Club, the Charles River Esplanade Association, Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, Minute Man National Historical Park, and the Franklin Park Coalition.

Excluding the pelagic trips, there were 286 eBird checklists associated with the 198 trips reported from Massachusetts. Over half the trips occurred in April and May. American Robin retained its position as the most frequently reported species, appearing on 204 checklists. Song Sparrow (193), Blue Jay (189) and Black-capped Chickadee (185) remained in second, third and fourth. Mourning Dove (166) and Northern Cardinal (161) switched places again. The big mover was Red-winged Blackbird (160), up from fourteenth last year to seventh, with American Goldfinch (155) and Common Grackle (155) tied for eighth and Downy Woodpecker (149) rounding out the top ten. The next five were American Crow, Mallard, Canada Goose, Tufted Titmouse and Northern Flicker.

ANNUAL REPORT 20232025-01-07T11:51:56-05:00

ANNUAL REPORT 2022

The Brookline Bird Club (BBC) recorded 276 species for 2022, based upon 204 reported trips. Of those, 264 species were recorded in Massachusetts, with 12 additional species reported from the out-of-state trips to New Hampshire and Maine.

As always, the pelagic trips provided several of the year’s birding highlights. In 2022, the club ran two back-to-back overnight trips out of Hyannis to Veatch Canyon. Even after many years, these trips continue to be full of surprises, and the first trip encountered something completely unexpected. Our August pelagic trips have a reputation as the most reliable opportunity to observe White-Faced Storm-Petrels in North America. Apart from a handful of birds blown into Nova Scotia by a hurricane in September, there were only nine other reports of this species on eBird for North America in 2022—and in each case only single birds. The BBC pelagic trip recorded 589 of them on August 27, “in one of the most surreal events ever witnessed”. In addition to the usual pelagic species, this trip also recorded Black-capped Petrel, Band-rumped Storm-Petrel, Long-tailed Jaeger, Audubon’s Shearwater, and Red-necked and Red Phalaropes. Birders on the upper deck were woken during the night by migrating passerines attracted by the boat lights, including a Prothonatory Warbler. A full report of this remarkable trip is available on the club website. 

Good birds recorded in Massachusetts on (or seen from) shore in 2022 included: Glaucous Gull (Cape Ann, January 8), King Eider (Hull, February 6), Dovekie (Halibut Pt, February 21), Northern Goshawk (Crooked Pond, Boxford, April 9), Sandhill Crane (Burrage Pond, April 30), Olive-sided Flycatcher (Mt. Auburn, April 20), Seaside Sparrow (Allen’s Pond, May 22), Red Crossbill (Mt. Greylock, June 18), Acadian Flycatcher (Quabbin, July 3), American Avocet (Plum Island, September 10), Marbled Godwit (Chatham, October 8) and Hammond’s Flycatcher (Falmouth, November 26). 

Outside of Massachusetts, additional year list species included the first club record of Tufted Puffin, observed by a few lucky participants on the Machias Seal Island trip on July 1. Other species on the Rangeley Lakes and Machias Seal Island trips included: Arctic Tern, Atlantic Puffin, Bicknell’s Thrush, Boreal Chickadee, Canada Jay, Common Murre, Ruffed Grouse, Spruce Grouse and Yellow-bellied Flycatcher. Bicknell’s Thrush was also recorded from New Hampshire, on the White Mountains trip, along with Black-backed Woodpecker. Lapland Longspur was reported later in the year along the coast. 

Birds we missed in Massachusetts included Common Redpoll, Black-legged Kittiwake, Rough-legged Hawk, Red Knot, Ruffed Grouse, Black Vulture, Sora, Evening Grosbeak, Northern Shrike, Canvasback, and Yellow-breasted Chat.  

There were 395 species reported in eBird in 2022 for Massachusetts, of which the club’s total of 264 represented 67 percent. The club reported the most species in Essex County (205), followed by Middlesex (157), Plymouth (155), Suffolk (138), Worcester (133), Barnstable (119), and Norfolk (111). Trips to Mt. Auburn Cemetery recorded 107 species this year, including 23 species of warblers. Spring migration was relatively slow in the Eastern part of the state, apart from a few memorable days along the coast.

The following table shows the trips reporting the most species by month: 

DateLocationSpeciesLeader
1/1Newburyport & Vicinity52Laura de la Flor
2/6Scituate to Plymouth58Glenn d’Entremont
3/2Cape Ann46Barbara Volkle
4/30South Shore99 Glenn d’Entremont
5/22Allen’s Pond72Nick Paulson
6/25Pine Hill Grasslands54Kathy Dia
7/23Ellsville Harbor48Glenn d’Entremont
8/21Squantum40Glenn d’Entremont
9/3Plum Island61Nick Paulson
10/8Cape Cod86Glenn d’Entremont
11/26Cape Cod68Glenn d’Entremont
12/4Dunback Meadow31Cliff Cook

Thanks to all our trip leaders, especially those who led 10 or more trips in 2022: Cliff Cook, Peter Van Demark, Kathy Dia, Glenn d’Entremont, Linda Ferraresso, Thomas Michel, Nick Paulson, David Scott, and Dave Williams. Thanks also to the organizations with whom the club co-sponsors trips. These include the South Shore Bird Club, the Charles River Esplanade Association, Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, Minute Man National Historical Park, and the Franklin Park Coalition.

Excluding the pelagic trips there were 288 eBird checklists associated with the 204 reported trips. Over half the trips occurred in April and May. American Robin was the most frequently recorded species, on 202 checklists. The list of species we observed most often is of course dependent on where the club leads trips and how they are reported, but the top 10 proved remarkably stable compared with the previous year. Song Sparrow (193) and Blue Jay (183) traded places, with Black-capped Chickadee (180) remaining in fourth position. Northern Cardinal (172) and Mourning Dove (164) switched fifth and sixth places, with American Goldfinch (155) and Downy Woodpecker (146) staying in seventh and eighth. Common Grackle (145) moved up one place to ninth, and American Crow (143) moved up two to tenth. Just outside the top 10 were Mallard (142), Tufted Titmouse (138), Canada Goose (138), Red-winged Blackbird (136), and Red-bellied Woodpecker (133). 

ANNUAL REPORT 20222025-01-07T11:42:24-05:00

ANNUAL REPORT 2021

Brookline Bird Club

2021 Statistical and Year-End Report

By David Scott, Club Statistician

The Brookline Bird Club recorded 270 species for 2021, based upon 206 reported trips. Two-hundred and sixty-five species were recorded in Massachusetts, with the following out-of-state species recorded from the Rangely Lakes trip in Maine: Canada Jay, Bicknell’s Thrush, Boreal Chickadee, Fox Sparrow, and Spruce Grouse. Despite some restrictions due to the pandemic, the club led trips to most of our favorite birding locations and ran a successful pelagic trip in August. 

With many activities curtailed during the pandemic, there were frequent media stories of an increased interest in birding, and we were delighted to see many new faces on our field trips in the spring. With numbers limited, some trips had waitlists of several dozen. Thanks to Eric Swanzey and Cliff Cook for coordinating the registration system, which allowed us to manage attendance on trips during the early part of the year.

The club recorded few extreme rarities in 2021, but there were still some very good birds recorded. Highlights included: flocks of Common Redpolls, Red and White-winged Crossbills (Salisbury, January 24), Yellow-throated Warbler (Mount Auburn Cemetery, May 11), Golden-winged Warbler (Mount Auburn Cemetery, May 19), Sandhill Crane and Little Blue Heron (Bolton Flats, May 23), Black Tern and Seaside Sparrow (Plum Island, May 30), Acadian Flycatcher (Quabbin, June 5), White-faced Storm-Petrel, Audubon’s Shearwater, Red and Red-necked Phalaropes (overnight pelagic, August 7-8), Hudsonian and Marbled Godwits (Plum Island, October 10), Western Kingbird (Plum Island, November 6). The Winthrop Monk Parakeets were popular in 2021, and the club stopped by to see them on August 28. 

Birds we missed included Iceland Gull, Wilson’s Snipe, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Dovekie, Black Vulture, Clay-colored Sparrow, Yellow-breasted Chat and a raft of ducks – Canvasback, Redhead, Barrow’s Goldeneye, Eurasian Wigeon, and King Eider. 

There were 388 species reported for Massachusetts in eBird, of which the club’s total of 265 represented 68 percent (compared with 75 percent in 2019). The best bird of the year in Massachusetts—though not one observed on a club trip—was the astonishing Steller’s Sea-Eagle, which stopped by the Taunton River before moving on up to Maine. A Wood Stork pulled in a good crowd during its short visit to Gloucester but did not stay long enough for the BBC to catch up with it. 

The club reported most species in Essex County (215), followed by Middlesex (154), Worcester (132), Barnstable (127), Suffolk (120), Plymouth (113), and Norfolk (106). After missing out in 2020, it was good to be back at Mount Auburn Cemetery for the spring migration and the club recorded a total of 109 species there from 37 reported trips, including 26 species of warbler.

With many trips involving multiple locations, including those to Maine and the pelagic, there were 282 eBird checklists associated with the 206 reported trips. American Robin was the most frequently reported species, on 164 checklists, followed by Blue Jay (159), Song Sparrow (150), Black-capped Chickadee (149), Mourning Dove (144), Northern Cardinal (142), American Goldfinch (139), Downy Woodpecker (131), Mallard (125), Common Grackle (123), Tufted Titmouse (118), American Crow (115), and Red-winged Blackbird (114).

The following table shows the trips reporting the most species by month:  

DateLocationSpeciesLeader
1/9Charles River29Thomas Michel
2/20Newburyport & Salisbury46Cliff Cook
3/27Great Meadows35Sylvia Martin
4/26Westboro WMA46Nicholas Paulson
5/1South Shore81Glenn d’Entremont
6/6Mt. Holyoke to Quabbin62Mark Burns
7/11Crane Pond WMA49 Zach Weber
8/15Squantum52Glenn d’Entremont
9/11Plum Island54Nicholas Paulson
10/10Hellcat Tower Big Sit, Plum Island86Nicholas Paulson
11/6Essex to Plum Island54Linda Ferraresso/Nick Paulson
12/5Emerald Necklace Ponds26Bob Mayer

Thanks to all our trip leaders, especially those who led 10 or more trips in 2021: Peter Van Demark, Kathy Dia, Glenn d’Entremont, Linda Ferraresso, Sylvia Martin, Thomas Michel, Nick Paulson, and Dave Williams.

There were two virtual club meetings. In April, acclaimed author Jennifer Ackerman presented “The Bird Way: How Birds Talk, Work, Play, Parent and Think”, a wide-ranging talk on bird behavior around the globe. In October, Rosemary Mosco, the creator of Bird and Moon Comics, shared her experiences blending science and art to help people connect with the natural world and engage in its conservation. The club continued to offer webinars on a diverse selection of topics including bird identification, where to go birding, and how to increase engagement in birding. Many of these are archived on the BBC website in the Members section.

ANNUAL REPORT 20212025-01-07T11:36:16-05:00

ANNUAL REPORT 2020

Brookline Bird Club

2020 Statistical and Year-End Report

By David Scott, Club Statistician

The Brookline Bird Club recorded 216 species for 2020, based upon 62 reported trips. A total of 215 species were recorded in Massachusetts, with a Glaucous Gull in Hampton, NH the only additional out-of-state species. By themselves, other than being considerably lower than usual, the numbers reveal nothing about the unprecedented circumstances the club experienced in 2020. Trips were cancelled from mid-March through to July, and we missed the entire spring songbird migration period. The club was also unable to schedule any pelagic trips. Instead, for much of the year, many of us focused on enjoying the birds in our own yards and neighborhoods.

The club recorded a few rarities in 2020. Highlights included: King Eider (Cape Ann, January 1), Pacific Loon (Halibut Point, January 25), Western Tanager (Sandwich, February 9), Greater White-fronted Goose (Plum Island, February 16), Barnacle Goose (Rochester, February 22), Townsend’s Solitaire (Halibut Point, February 23), Western Kingbird (Bolton Flats, October 11) and Red Crossbill (Allen’s Pond, November 28). The winter of 2019-2020 was a productive one for alcids, with Razorbill, Black Guillemot, Dovekie and Thick-billed Murre all occurring on multiple trips. The fall of 2020 also saw one of the biggest irruptions of winter finches in many years, and the club had frequent encounters with Pine Siskins and Purple Finches, along with the abundant Red-breasted Nuthatches.

Birds we missed, in most cases for the first time in the club’s history: Ovenbird, Willet, Veery, Least Tern, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Piping Plover, Northern Waterthrush, Orchard Oriole, Nashville Warbler, Bank Swallow, American Coot, Blue-winged Warbler, Ruddy Turnstone, American Oystercatcher, Least Flycatcher and many others.

People still went birding throughout 2020, of course, and there were 378 species reported for Massachusetts in eBird, of which the club’s total of 215 represented 57% (down from 75% in 2019). We saw the most species in Essex County (153), followed by Barnstable (108), Worcester (107), Middlesex (99), Bristol (94) and Plymouth (70).

With many of the trips involving multiple locations, there were 130 checklists associated with the 62 reported trips. With a bias this year towards species observed more frequently in the fall and winter months, which likely cost American Robin its number one position, the most frequently reported species were: Song Sparrow (74 checklists), Herring Gull (69), American Crow (64), Black-capped Chickadee (63), Blue Jay (59), Common Eider (59), Mallard (58), American Robin (53), Northern Cardinal (52), Downy Woodpecker (52), Canada Goose (51).

We would like to thank all of our trip leaders for 2020, especially those who worked with the club to re-establish field trips after the lock-down period ended in late summer.

The following table shows the trips reporting the most species by month:

Date                 Location                                              Species            Leader

1/1                   New Year’s Day, Essex County         52                    Laura de la Flor/Mark Burns

2/15                 Annual MA Waterfowl Prowl            51                    David Scott

3/15                 Halibut Point                                       31                    Peter Van Demark

7/25                 Great Meadows                                   35                    Sylvia Martin

8/23                 Delaney WMA                                    35                    Cliff Cook

9/5                   Daniel Webster                                   45                    Glenn d’Entremont

10/3                 Outer Cape Cod                                  81                    Glenn d’Entremont

10/11               Bolton Flats Big Sit (+ pre-dawn)      71                    Nicklaus Paulson

11/28               Bristol County                                    77                    Glenn d’Entremont

12/26               Cape Ann                                            26                    John Nelson

The club’s Winter meeting was held on February 29 in Bedford and featured writer and naturalist Scott Weidensaul, who gave an excellent talk based upon his book Return to Wild America: A Yearlong Search for the Continent’s Natural Soul. In the book, Weidensaul retraces the journey undertaken by Roger Peterson and James Fisher in 1955, to explore how the continent’s landscapes have changed over the previous half century, and the impact of conservation efforts to preserve and restore the natural world. The BBC’s annual meeting usually takes place in the Spring but was postponed until the Fall as the club adapted to our new online reality. Don Kroodsma gave a highly entertaining virtual presentation on October 23, based on his recent book Birdsong for the Curious Naturalist. The talk included terrific insights into both the “how” and the “why” of birdsong and encouraged listeners to explore more deeply through the associated website: http://birdsongforthecurious.com.

ANNUAL REPORT 20202024-02-14T18:54:08-05:00

ANNUAL REPORT 2019

Brookline Bird Club

2019 Statistical and Year-End Report

By David Scott, Club Statistician

 

The Brookline Bird Club recorded 285 species for 2019, based upon 182 reported trips (out of 249 that were scheduled). A total of 280 species were recorded in Massachusetts, with a further four species recorded only in Maine (Bicknell’s Thrush, Boreal Chickadee, Canada Jay and White-winged Crossbill) and Lapland Longspur from a trip in New Hampshire.

The bird of the year was undoubtedly the Bermuda Petrel, seen on a remarkable overnight pelagic trip from 21–22 September. Thought extinct for 300 years, rediscovered in 1951, and with the global population still in the low hundreds after intensive conservation efforts, this species was an incredible find. Other notable birds on that trip included five Black-capped Petrels, a Sabine’s Gull, a Brown Booby, a White-faced Storm-Petrel and a South Polar Skua. A full report of the pelagic trip is available on the BBC website. Other rarities seen by the club in 2019 included: Ross’s Goose (Plum Island, February 10), Red Crossbill (Dunback Meadow in Lexington, March 16), Caspian Tern (Burrage Pond, Halifax, May 4), Wilson’s Plover (Plum Island, September 22), Western Kingbird (Wellfleet Audubon, October 5) and Townsend’s Solitaire (Halibut Point, December 12). The winter of 2018/2019 also saw the largest irruption of Evening Grosbeaks for many years, and these were reported on three club trips.

Birds we missed: Canvasback, Glaucous Gull, Hudsonian Godwit, Marbled Godwit, Redhead, Snow Goose, Wilson’s Phalarope, Black-legged Kittiwake, Yellow-breasted Chat, Forster’s Tern, Tricolored Heron, Cattle Egret and Little Blue Heron.

There were 374 species reported for Massachusetts in eBird in 2019, of which the club’s total of 280 represented 75 percent. Across the state’s counties, we saw the most species in Essex (218), followed by Plymouth (159), Middlesex (150), Barnstable (134), Worcester (133), and Suffolk (127). As always, we scheduled the most trips for Mount Auburn Cemetery (42), and we recorded 114 species there, including 27 species of warblers.

The club has made excellent progress importing field trip reports directly into eBird. With many of the trips involving multiple locations, there were 328 checklists associated with the 182 reported trips. The most frequently reported species were: American Robin (186 checklists), Blue Jay (177), Song Sparrow (174), Black-capped Chickadee (156), Northern Cardinal (151), Mourning Dove (148), American Goldfinch (144), Mallard (143), Canada Goose (140), Downy Woodpecker (123), Red-winged Blackbird (123).

We would like to thank all 52 of our trip leaders for 2019, as well as those who organize and lead the pelagic trips. Special thanks to the following, each of whom led over 10 trips during the year: Dave Williams, Glenn d’Entremont, Linda Ferraresso, Nickilas Paulson and Peter Van Demark.

The following table shows the trips reporting the most species by month:

Date                 Location                                              Species            Leader

1/1                   New Year’s Day, Essex County         57                    Laura de la Flor/Mark Burns

2/16                 Annual MASS Waterfowl Prowl        46                    Eddie Giles

3/4                   Cape Ann                                            24                    Barbara Volkle

4/29                 Westborough WMA                           48                    Nickilas Paulson

5/4                   South Shore Century Run                   112                  Glenn d’Entremont

6/15                 Mt Greylock                                       54                    Glenn d’Entremont

7/14                 Crane Pond WMA                              51                    Zack Weber

8/25                 Plum Island                                         57                    Neil Hayward

9/24                 Plum Island                                         59                    Dave Williams

10/5                 Outer Cape Cod                                  84                    Glenn d’Entremont

11/11               Plum Island                                         50                    Dave Williams

11/30               Fairhaven                                            50                    Glenn d’Entremont

12/12               Cape Ann                                            39                    Barbara Volkle

The club held three evening meetings. The Winter meeting on February 9 in Bedford was a return of the Members’ Night, with club members presenting stories of recent birding trips (New Zealand’s southern islands; birding the Galapagos; and conservation birding in Ecuador); sharing their literary, photographic and video work. For many the highlight was a presentation from Norman Smith on his Snowy Owl research, which featured a guest appearance from a soon-to-be-released owl.

The Annual meeting on April 11, at Harvard’s Geological Lecture Hall in Cambridge, was particularly well-attended with over 200 people present. It featured Noah Strycker, who set a world big year record in 2015, detailed in his book, “Birding Without Borders”. His approach was to travel on a single continuous journey across the continents, enlisting local birders as guides along the way. In a memorable talk, he shared highlights from his trip, and concluded that while he might not recall each of the 6,042 species from his big year, he remembered every single one of the birders that he met along the way.

ANNUAL REPORT 20192024-02-14T18:54:08-05:00

ANNUAL REPORT 2017

Brookline Bird Club

2017 Statistical and Year-End Report

By Sabrina Hepburn, Club Statistician

Beginning in 2016, the Brookline Bird Club made a significant shift in how we keep records and club trip reports. instead of mailing paper copies of field cards to trip leaders, to be completed and mailed back to the Statistician after each trip, the BBC started asking leaders to enter their checklists into eBird, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s enormous global citizen science project, and to share those checklists with the club’s account, Brookline Bird Club. This challenge has produced both some excellent benefits and some significant challenges. Positive aspects have been that eBird provides a streamlined wav to enter trips immediately, updates the club records and statistics in real time as checklists are shared, is easily downloadable to Excel, significantly reduces costs and paper use, and allows the BBC to contribute its sightings to an important database used for science and conservation research. Challenges have included needing more time to enter the multiple checklists that need to be submitted on trips visiting many locations or that have many incidental sightings along the road, training trip leaders who are not already using eBird on how to use it, and adoption of the new system by trip leaders in general (although trip leaders may still request a hardcopy checklist if they do not wish to use eBird).

In 2017, the BBC recorded a total of 275 species on 200 eBird checklists. This is the same number recorded in 2016. In Massachusetts, the club recorded 269 species on 192 checklists. This is a bit lower than the average prior to the move to eBird, mostly due to some reduction in the reporting of trips since the switch. The additional five species seen out-of-state were Olive-sided Flycatcher, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Gray Jay, Red Crossbill, and White-winged Crossbill, all in Maine. Unfortunately, due to a bad string of luck with adverse weather conditions, none of the dedicated BBC pelagic trips were able to run in 2017, which resulted in a notable lack of some of the less common pelagic species that the club usually records during the year.

The most notable species recorded on a BBC trip in 2017 was probably the continuing Little Stint on Morris Island, recorded on Glenn d’Entremont’s Cape Cod Shorebirds trip on August 19. As the next runner-up, a continuing female Rufous Hummingbird in Hingham was spotted on November 25 on Glenn’s leader’s choice trip south of Boston. Other species easily missed that made it on the club’s list this year included Eurasian Wigeon on Cape Cod on the Annual Waterfowl Prowl, Sora at Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, Western Sandpiper on Plymouth Beach, Long-billed Dowitcher, Nelson’s Sparrow, Connecticut Warbler, and Arctic Tern at Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, White -eyed Vireo at Allen’s Pond Sanctuary, Red-headed Woodpecker at Appleton Farms, Prothonotary Warbler at Fresh Pond in Cambridge, and Summer Tanager at Mount Auburn Cemetery.

Unsurprisingly, the location with the most trips was again Mount Auburn Cemetery in Watertown and Cambridge, with 44 trips. Although only 20 of these trips were reported, 104 species were recorded there this year. The next most frequently visited location was Newburyport, Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, Plum Island, and vicinity, with more than 30 trips.

The highest number of participants was recorded on Jason Forbes’s May 7 trip to Mount Auburn Cemetery during the height of migration, with 30 people. The next most popular trips reported were to Boston Public Garden on May 4 and the woodcock walk at Alewife Reservation in Cambridge on March 30, with 26 and 20 participants, respectively. Leaders with over 10 trips throughout the year include Dave Williams, Glenn d’Entremont, Ida Giriunas, Linda Ferraresso, and Nickilas Paulson.

The following table shows the trips reporting the most species by month:

Date Location Count Leader 1/21 /17 Cape Ann 48 species Linda Ferraresso

  • 2/25/17 Annual MASS Waterfowl Prowl 49 species Eddie Giles
  • 3/4/17 South Shore 49 species Glenn d’Entremont
  • 4/30/17 Mt. Auburn Cemetery 54 species Zack Weber
  • 5/6/17 South Shore Century Run 104 species Glenn d’Entremont
  • 6/10/17 Westborough WMA 74 species Nickilas Paulson
  • 712/17 Quabbin Reservoir 58 species Glenn d’Entremont
  • 8112/17 Plum Island 64 species Sabrina Hepburn
  • 9/10/17 Plum Island 63 species Dave Williams
  • 10/7117 Outer Cape Cod 65 species Glenn d’Entremont
  • 11/25/17 Leader’s Choice South of Boston – 54 species Glenn d’Entremont
  • 12/13/17 Plum Island 40 species Zack Weber

As usual, the BBC held three club meetings with guest speakers throughout the year. The first was the winter meeting at John Glenn Middle School in Bedford. on February 10, with invited guest speaker Steve Arena presenting “Massachusetts March Birds,” an audio-visual-rich presentation of the sights and sounds deep in Massachusetts marshes. Although the weather threatened snow, the meeting went on as scheduled. The Annual Meeting on April 28 at the Geological Lecture Hall at Harvard University Cambridge featured the contributions that individuals and small groups can have through local community birding projects, with two paired topics: “The Great Meadows Survey Team-Building a Community through Birding” presented by Will Martens and Kathy Dia, and “Birding with Ludlow: The Concord Birds Project” presented by David Swain. For the final meeting of the year, held at the Reading Public Library on the afternoon of October 21, the club invited Lee Attix with the Biodiversity Research Institute in Portland, Maine, to present “Restore the Call: A Bold Initiative to Aid Loon Recovery in Massachusetts.”

ANNUAL REPORT 20172024-02-14T19:00:19-05:00

ANNUAL REPORT 2015

2015 STATISTICAL AND YEAR END REPORT

By Robert H. Stymeist, Statistician

During 2015, the Brookline Bird Club listed 295 species of birds on 182 reported trips, six species less than last year.  A total of 257 trips were scheduled just two less than last year, however this year 27 trips were cancelled by weather, most of them during late January, most of February and even into the first weeks of March due to the four big snowstorms that gave Boston and most of the state the distinction of the snowiest winter of record. There were 48 trips that unfortunately went unreported. In Massachusetts the Club listed a total of 280 species, the additional 15 birds seen out of state were: Spruce Grouse, Gray Jay and Boreal Chickadee from both Vermont and Maine, Black-backed Woodpecker from Vermont, Arctic and Black tern, Atlantic Puffin, Nelson’s and Seaside sparrows from Maine. In New Hampshire, Bob Petersen extended his Newburyport trip to Seabrook for the Gyrfalcon, Laura de la Flor logged in Bicknell’s Thrush on her summer solstice trip and on Steve Mirick’s coastal New Hampshire trip on November 1 they added four species not seen in Massachusetts, Redhead, Cattle Egret, Lesser Black-backed Gull and Orange-crowned Warbler! Overall 2015 was about average in terms of the number of trips scheduled and a little less in the number of birds reported. In 2015 the Club scheduled 46 all day, 182 morning, 20 afternoon or evening, five pelagic and four weekend trips.

One new species, a White-tailed Tropicbird was added to the overall Brookline Bird Club list of birds, imagine two species of tropicbirds on the August 22 Extreme Pelagic! The Red-billed Tropicbird was the second record for the Club, the first just last August from Hydrographer Canyon. The Prairie Falcon found on New Years Day on Plum Island would have been the first state record but was rejected when several photographs showed the bird had falconer’s jesses attached to one leg, nonetheless birders on the trip were pretty excited getting exceptional views

Some of the more unusual species noted in 2015 included: Greater White-fronted Goose in Ipswich, an American Avocet , a Sabine’s Gull at Race Point, Ash-throated Flycatcher from Rockport, a Townsend’s Solitaire and a Summer Tanager all from Plum Island., and the Extreme pelagic trips added in addition to the tropicbirds the only sightings of  Black-capped Petrel, Audubon’s Shearwater, White-faced, Leach’s and Band-rumped Storm-Petrels, Red-necked Phalarope, Long-tailed Jaeger, South Polar Skua and Bridled Tern

Missing from the Club list of routinely seen species in 2015 was: Canvasback, Barrow’s Goldeneye, Little Blue Heron, Black Vulture, Sora Rail, Marbled Godwit, Northern Shrike and Lapland Longspur. Five other species that are often found on a Massachusetts trip included Redhead, Cattle Egret, Lesser-black-backed Gull, Orange-crowned Warbler and Seaside Sparrow, but were noted from New Hampshire

The Club visited Essex County most often, with a total of 84 trips (48 to Newburyport and Plum Island area, 24 to Cape Ann as well trips to Marblehead Neck Wildlife Sanctuary, three trips to Ipswich, and three to Nahant and visits to Boxford, Manchester and Topsfield). The trips in Essex County accounted for 219 species, which is 78% of all the birds reported on Club trips. Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge was second with 43 trips totaling 109 species including 24 species of warblers including a very cooperative Yellow-breasted Chat. There were 27 trips scheduled in the Metropolitan Boston area. Twenty-eight trips to Cape Cod and the South Shore which recorded 185 species. There were 14 trips in the Sudbury River Valley area, which includes Great Meadows NWR, Oxbow NWR, and the Assabet NWR and 14 trips to areas in both central and western Massachusetts. There were five pelagic trips scheduled for a combined total of 37 species including twelve species that were not found anywhere else but on the high seas.

Out-of-state trips included a weekend trip to the Machias area and a weekend trip criss-crossing the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. Ida Giriunas led her 32nd annual Club trip to the Machias area which includes the famous Machias Seal Island where an estimated 5000 Atlantic Puffins are breeding. This Island is fantastic, no matter where you stand thousands of birds surround you; in addition to the puffins the group tallied 1500 Common Murre, almost five thousand Razorbills and 300 Arctic Terns. Other highlights of the Maine weekend included 24 Spruce Grouse, though most of those were tennis ball size young, several Boreal Chickadees, a Gray Jay and ten Black Terns. A mid June trip to the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont logged in 109 species which included the “grand slam” of boreal birds: Spruce Grouse, Black-backed Woodpecker, Gray Jay and Boreal Chickadee. In addition to 19 species of warblers, the group enjoyed pumping American Bitterns, winnowing Wilson’s Snipe,  Olive-sided and Yellow-bellied Flycatchers and a chorus of Veery, Hermit, Swainson’s and Wood thrushes.

Highlights from the 2015 Brookline Bird Club Year

Laura de la Flor and Mark Burns as always opened up the start of 2015 by leading their 19th annual New Year’s Day birding trip in the Newburyport area. Twenty-eight members enjoyed a mild New Years Day of birding with temperatures in the upper 40’s. During the customary welcoming toast of sparkling apple cider a hot line call came in that a probable Prairie Falcon was on the Refuge, needless to say the trip bolted onto Plum Island. Everyone had great looks as the bird made several close approaches, unfortunately several photographs showed the bird had falconer’s jesses attached to one leg and was most likely an escaped bird. The group tallied 58 species including the only Greater White-fronted Goose seen during the year.

The weather turned nasty with the first bitter cold as early as January 8 when the temperature hit minus 1 in Boston, then the first of four major snow storms arrived dumping a record 108.6 inches of snow, the most ever surpassing the previous record  of 107.6 set in 1995-96. A total of 21 trips during January-March were cancelled because of weather

The 2015 Winter Meeting of the Club was on Friday February 27 at the John Glenn Middle School in Bedford. Mark Lynch and Sheila Carroll presented a comprehensive tour of birding as well as all other aspects of nature of Central Massachusetts and the Blackstone Valley which continues into Rhode Island.  The Spring Meeting at the Harvard Museum of Natural History on April 24 featured Massachusetts resident Dorian Anderson who left a post-doctoral position at Mass General Hospital to pursue a year long biking and birding adventure. During 2014 he biked nearly 18,000 miles around the United States and recorded an amazing 617 species. Dorian was very entertaining as he relived this unique birding adventure. The guest speaker at the fall lecture meeting at Harvard on October 16 was Tom French, the Assistant Director of the Mass Division of Fisheries and Wildlife who presented an informative history of the Division’s work and his evolvement with the Endangered Species Program.

Spring trips to Mt Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge recorded 109 species including 24 species of warblers including great looks at several Cape May and a very cooperative Yellow-breasted Chat. Glenn d’Entremont led four Thursday morning trips to Moose Hill in Sharon and tallied 55 species and among the 14 species of warblers was a very cooperative Cape May on May 12. In June the Club focus is on breeding birds, on June 6 Linda Ferraresso organized a trip to Westover Air Force Base in Chicopee to see nesting grassland species, the Club had great looks at 10 Upland Sandpipers, four Grasshopper Sparrows and over 15 Eastern Meadowlarks all of these species are of critical concern in the Northeast. Mount Greylock is visited every year by the Club and this year the Club tallied 82 Red-eyed Vireos and 32 Ovenbirds in those Berkshire Hills.

Summer trips are highlighted by morning and evening trips to Plum Island searching for early migrating shorebirds and flocks of herons flying to roost.  On August 2 the Club recorded the only American Avocet of the year and other noteworthy shorebirds found on the refuge included a Baird’s Sandpiper, Buff-breasted and Western sandpipers on August 29.

Five pelagic trips were scheduled, two trips had to be cancelled because of weather, the three trips recorded 37 species; the Extreme Pelagic trips are the most exciting. The July 18 trip recorded nearly 200 Cory’s Shearwaters including at least two Scopoli’s type, a total of 196 Leach’s Storm-Petrels were tallied, the highest ever on these trips and two well photographed Band-rumped Storm-Petrel. The marine mammal show was also fantastic with three species of dolphin and close encounters with a Fin Whale. The August 22-23 Extreme Pelagic was an outstanding success, the Club recorded it’s first ever White-tailed Tropicbird with one on August 22and three on August 23, also a Red-billedTropicbird was seen, both tropicbirds gave everyone on board fantastic views. A record number of at least 16 White-faced and as many as 17 Band-rumped Storm-Petrels were tallied.

The fall migration starts off with a two day Cape Cod Blitz hitting the hot spots on the outer Cape from Wellfleet to Provincetown, a total of 117 species, highlights included incredible numbers of shearwaters off Race Point and among them we found an adult Little Gull and an adult Sabine’s Gull, the passerine migration this weekend was lackluster and we found no Philadelphia Vireos, the first time this species was missed on this weekend.. For the second year, Karsten Hartel led a combined Brookline and Menotomy Bird Club walk every Wednesday during September and October to Danehy Park in Cambridge, the combined total of the eight walks was 61 species including 11 species of warblers, a Philadelphia Vireo and a Clay-colored Sparrow. October is the height of the sparrow migration and the Club visits community gardens in Wayland and Newton as wells as Cumberland Farms and Bolton Flats. A combined Owl Prowl with the South Shore Bird Club in mid October logged in five Screech and four Barred Owls in the south shore towns of Halifax and Middleboro.

November and December finds our members visiting Cape Ann with six trips and six trips to the Plum Island Newburyport area. On November 21 Bill Drummond led seven members on a memorable trip around Cape Ann highlighted by re-finding the Townsend’s Solitaire at Halibut Point State Park that was first noted on November 12.On December 12 Bob Peterson found the Club’s only Common Murre of the year and added Ash-throated Flycatcherfor the last new bird, the 295thbird of 2015

At the end of the year the Club suspends scheduled trips so that our members can participate in the Christmas Bird Counts (CBC). There are 34 count circles in Massachusetts

A total of 62 leaders guided our members around the state throughout the year. All of our dedicated leaders deserve a special thank-you including several leaders that deserve recognition for not only many years of leading but the number of trips each year they lead, Ida Giriunas, the energizer bunny that keeps going and going led a total of 24 trips, including organizing the extreme pelagic trips that has put the Brookline Bird Club on the map as a premier destination for pelagic birding! Glenn d’Entremont led 17 trips all south of Boston and many of which were co-sponsored with the South Shore Bird Club, Jonathan Center and Eddie Giles each led 11 trips and another eight dedicated leaders accounted for eight or more trips each

The biggest trip list this year was Glenn d’Entremont’s South Shore Century Run trip, recording 113 species on May 9. This trip, entirely in locations in Plymouth County, recorded the Club’s only Upland Sandpiper and Worm-eating Warbler seen in Massachusetts in 2015, other highlights included a late Red-necked Grebe, three Barred Owls, two Vesper Sparrows and a Pine Siskin.

In the following table you can see which trip in each month recorded the most species; this may help in planning for a big year of birding.

January 1           Essex County                        58 species          Laura de la Flor, leader

February            not applicable since ten trips cancelled because of record snowstorms

March                 not applicable since seven trips cancelled due to several snow storms

April 27              Nahant to Marblehead       55 species     Linda Pivacek, leader

May 9                  South Shore Century Run 113 species         Glenn d’Entremont, leader

June 20              Mt Greylock area                68 species           Glenn d’Entremont, leader

July 3                  Quabbin area                       63 species          Glenn d’Entremont, leader

August 15           Plum Island                         63 species          Sabrina Hepburn, leader

September 20   P’town-Truro                       99 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

October 3           Outer Cape Cod                  62 species          Glenn d’Entremont, leader

November 28    Outer Cape Cod                  73 species          Glenn d’Entremont, leader

December 13     Plum Island                         40 species          Zack Webber, leader

The Club recorded nearly 75 % of all the birds that were noted during 2015-pretty impressive! A total of at least 373 species were observed and reported by birders across the state during 2015.

Weather-wise 2015 was the warmest year world-wide on record surpassing that record just last year!

ANNUAL REPORT 20152024-02-14T19:01:25-05:00

ANNUAL REPORT 2014

2014 STATISTICAL AND YEAR END REPORT

By Robert H. Stymeist, Statistician

During 2014, the Brookline Bird Club listed 301 species of birds on 218 reported trips.. A total of 259trips were scheduled, sixteen trips were cancelled by weather and 27 trips unfortunately went unreported. In Massachusetts the Club listed a total of 290 species, the additional 11 birds seen out of state were: Ring-necked Pheasant and Bicknell’s Thrush in Vermont, Spruce Grouse, Northern Goshawk, Northern Saw-whet Owl, Atlantic Puffin, Arctic Tern and Red Crossbill from Maine and Black-backed Woodpecker, Gray Jay and Boreal Chickadee from both Vermont and Maine. Overall 2014 was about average in terms of the number of trips scheduled and a little less in the number of birds reported. Last year the Club celebrated its 100thyear anniversary with an all-out effort for a big year, a total of 298 trips were scheduled with 19 impromptu trips added in search of rarities for a total of 317 trips, ironically the same number of species recorded in Massachusetts during 2013. In 2014 there were 45 all day, 148 morning, 15 afternoon or evening, six pelagic and four weekend trips. There were two impromptu trips organized one to Cuttyhunk Island and one overnight pelagic.

One new species, a Red-billed Tropicbird was added to the overall Brookline Bird Club list of birds, this sighting on the August Hydrographer Canyon trip was just the sixth record for Massachusetts. The Club recorded only its second Fork-tailed Flycatcher on May 14 at Mount Auburn Cemetery, the only other record was on Bill Drummond’s 1994 big May Day trip when he extended his Plum Island trip to Kittery Point Maine.

Some of the more unusual species noted in 2014 included: Ross’s Goose and Cackling Goose in Ipswich, a Tri-colored Heron, a Gull-billed Tern and a Summer Tanager all from Plum Island., and the Extreme pelagic trips added in addition to the tropicbird the only sightings of White-faced, Leach’s and Band-rumped Storm-Petrels, Audubon’s Shearwater and South Polar Skua.

The Club visited Essex County most often, with a total of 74 trips (39 to Newburyport and Plum Island area, 26 to Cape Ann as well trips to Marblehead Neck Wildlife Sanctuary, three trips to Ipswich, and three to Nahant and visits to Boxford, Manchester and Topsfield). The trips in Essex County accounted for 224 species, which is 77% of all the birds reported on Club trips. Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge was second with 35 trips totaling 110 species including 24 species of warblers. There were 27 trips scheduled in the Metropolitan Boston area. Twenty-eight trips to Cape Cod and the South Shore which recorded 214 species. There were 15 trips in the Sudbury River Valley area, which includes Great Meadows NWR, Oxbow NWR, and the Assabet NWR and ten trips to areas in both central and western Massachusetts. There were seven pelagic trips scheduled for a combined total of 71 species including ten species that were not found anywhere else but on the high seas.

Missing from the Club list of routinely seen species in 2014 were: Cattle Egret, Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, Black Vulture, Marbled Godwit, Stilt Sandpiper, Wilson’s Phalarope, Common Nighthawk, Connecticut and Cerulean warblers, Dickcissel and Seaside Sparrow. Five other species, Ring-necked Pheasant, Northern Goshawk, Northern Saw-whet Owl, Arctic Tern and Red Crossbill were not seen on any Massachusetts trip but were noted from Vermont and Maine

Out-of-state trips included weekend trips to the Machias area and to the Rangeley Lakes region in Maine, and a weekend trip criss-crossing the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. The combined total number of species on the Maine trips was 149 and included some boreal birds such as Spruce Grouse, Black-backed Woodpecker, Gray Jay,  and Boreal Chickadee.   Ida Giriunas led her 31st annual Club trip to the Machias area which includes the famous Machias Seal Island and recorded over 2000 Atlantic Puffins! Ida and Eddie Giles have been leading these great trips for many years affording Club members the opportunity to see some northern forest and ocean birds that don’t nest in Massachusetts. A weekend trip to the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont was new this year after a hiatus of 29 years, for several years up until 1985 John Kennedy led our members to the famous Moose Bog. This year we recorded 108 species including the Clubs only Bicknell’s Thrush and Ring-necked Pheasants. The Vermont trip logged in 18 different warblers, several Yellow-bellied Flycatchers and great looks at a close Moose. There was just one trip scheduled in New Hampshire, on November 2 Steve and Jane Mirick led their annual early winter trip along the coast, though the weather was miserable they found a very late Laughing Gull among the 38 species that day.

Highlights from the 2014 Brookline Bird Club Year

Laura de la Flor and Mark Burns as always opened up the start of 2014 by leading their 18th annual New Year’s Day birding trip. Thirty-five members bundled up for a cold New Years Day of birding; after a welcoming toast of sparkling apple cider the group got down to birding and tallied a nice list of 62 species to start off the year. A Ross’s Goose that was discovered in Ipswich on Christmas Day 2013 was the Club’s first target, lucky for us the goose was not seen after the New Year. Other highlights included a Cackling Goose, a Black-headed Gull, eight Snowy Owls and an adult Red-headed Woodpecker. January 2014 was the coldest in ten years with several big snowstorms yet our Club leaders recorded 88 species by the end of the month! The annual Owl Prowl was a victim of the snow and had to be cancelled as well as four other scheduled trips.

On February 9, Glenn d’Entremont led a trip throughout the south shore starting in Scituate with snow falling; they ended up in Middleboro with a total of 77 species. Highlights included a drake Barrow’s Goldeneye, 3 Snowy and five Short-eared owls and 13 Eastern Meadowlarks. In March the Club scheduled Woodcock walks in Stoughton, Reading and in the Blue Hills as well as the annual Massachusetts Waterfowl Prowl, this year just on Cape Cod.

The 2014 Winter Meeting of the Club was on Friday February 28 at the Bedford Middle School, nearly 200 members packed the school auditorium to hear Norman Smith talk about his research on Snowy and Saw-whet Owls, preceding the meeting Shawn Carey presented his latest documentary on migrating shorebirds. After the talk Norman walked around the audience with a Snowy Owl. The Spring Meeting at the Harvard Museum of Natural History on April 11 featured our own Neil Hayward who presented a fascinating and humorous account of his “Accidental Big Year”; Neil tallied an amazing 750 year birds during 2013. The guest speaker at the fall lecture meeting at Harvard on October 24 was Andrew Vitz, the Massachusetts State Ornithologist who discussed Bird Conservation in the state focusing on Bald Eagles, Peregrine Falcons and Piping Plovers.

Seven pelagic trips were scheduled and recorded 71 species; the Extreme Pelagic trips are the most exciting. The July trip recorded eight Band-rumped Storm-Petrels and a small shearwater that may have been Barolo ‘s but the photos proved inconclusive. The August trip logged in 100 Audubon’s Shearwaters, the highest number for any effort in Massachusetts and the first Club record of Red-billed Tropicbird, to top it off the group enjoyed excellent looks at a Whale Shark and a Tiger Shark. The November trip to Nantucket Shoals witnessed an estimated 100, 000 Long-tailed Ducks, 60,000 Common Eider feeding in the rips off Monomoy

Summer trips are highlighted by evening trips to Plum Island searching for early migrating shorebirds and flocks of herons flying to roost.  On July 14 on Plum the Club recorded the onlyAmerican Avocet and other noteworthy shorebirds included a Baird’s Sandpiper and the only Hudsonian Godwit on August 21. A Gull-billed Tern was found on Jonathan Center’s Plum Island trip on August 30. Labor Day Weekend is the traditional time for Buff-breasted Sandpiper and Long-billed Dowitcher, the Club recorded the Buffy but dipped on the dowitcher.

The fall migration starts off with a two day Cape Cod Blitz hitting the hot spots on the outer Cape from Wellfleet to Provincetown, a total of 103 species were seen including six Philadelphia Vireos, a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher and “thousands” of seabirds noted offshore. New this year was a Wednesday morning survey of Danehy Park in Cambridge led by Karsten Hartel and co-sponsored with the Menotomy Bird Club; they listed the only Nelson’s Sparrow of the year. October brings the sparrows and frequent visits to community gardens in Wayland and Newton as wells as Cumberland Farms and Bolton Flats

November and December finds our members visiting Cape Ann with six trips and six trips to the Plum Island Newburyport area. On November 8, Ida had a bright and beautiful November day with the first Snowy Owl of the season, also a Barred Owl and Rough-legged Hawks.

At the end of the year the Club suspends scheduled trips so that our members can participate in the Christmas Bird Counts (CBC). There are 34 count circles in Massachusetts

A total of 62 leaders guided our members around the state throughout the year. All of our dedicated leaders deserve a special thank-you including several leaders that deserve recognition for not only many years of leading but the number of trips each year they lead, Ida Giriunas and Glenn d’Entremont tied for the most with 20 trips followed by Linda Ferraresso with 14 then Jonathan Center and Eddie Giles with 12, . Bill Drummond, Bob Petersen and Peter Van Demark each led 10 trips. Another 11 dedicated leaders accounted for six or more trips each.

The biggest trip list this year was Glenn d’Entremont’s South Shore Century Run trip, recording 121 species on May 10, this trip, entirely in locations in Plymouth County, recorded the Club’s only Worm-eating Warbler and Vesper Sparrows seen in Massachusetts in 2014.

In the following table you can see which trip in each month recorded the most species; this may help in planning for a big year of birding.

January 1             Essex County                      62 species          Laura de la Flor, leader

February 9           Scituate-Plymouth            77 species          Glenn d’Entremont, leader

March 16              Waterfowl Prowl               44 species           Eddie Giles, leader

April 27                Suffolk County                   76 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

May 10                 South Shore Century Run 121 species         Glenn d’Entremont, leader

June 21                Mt Greylock area                72 species           Glenn d’Entremont, leader

July 26                 Plymouth Beach                 49 species          Glenn d’Entremont, leader

August 21            Plum Island                         60 species          Bill Drummond, leader

September 13     Wellfleet                               87 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

October 4            Outer Cape Cod                  87 species          Glenn d’Entremont, leader

November 5        Boston                                  51 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

December 17       Cape Ann                            40 species          Neil Hayward, leader

The Club recorded nearly 79 % of all the birds that were noted during 2014-pretty impressive! A total of at least 369 species were observed and reported by birders across the state during 2014. There were no new birds added to the official state list, but some highlights included just the second record of Pacific Golden Plover, the third record of Common Ringed Plover and the fourth record of Cassin’s Kingbird.

Weather-wise 2014 was the warmest year world-wide on record, ironically of the large inhabited land areas, only the eastern half of the United States recorded below average temperatures in 2014, a mirror image of the unusual heat in the west. January and February saw record snowfall, nearly 45 inches in Boston alone. March continued with cold temperatures, in the first week of spring Cape Cod was hit with a blizzard with gusts reaching 83 mph on Nantucket, which also recorded the most March snowfall ever with 9.5 inches! April finally saw some warm temperatures and May was nearly perfect for birding- no extreme heat, good southwest winds and little rain. June was a great month for breeding birds with no cold spells and very little rain. July saw the first hurricane of the season when Arthur had winds of over 80 mph. September and October saw several powerful thunder storms including a nor’easter in late October caused a great deal of coastal damage. November brought us the first major snowstorm with some areas receiving up to 16 inches the day before Thanksgiving. December was warmer than average and most Christmas Bird Counts experienced good weather.

ANNUAL REPORT 20142026-07-30T16:35:57-04:00
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