2009 STATISTICAL AND YEAR END REPORT

By Robert H. Stymeist, Statistician

During 2009, the Brookline Bird Club listed 305 species of birds on 194 reported trips, just one species less than last year. A total of 233 trips were scheduled, 16 trips less than last year, and 57 trips less than the all time high number of 290 in 2000. There were 62 all-day, 144 mornings, 24 afternoons or evening, and 3 weekend trips. THIRTY-NINE trips were not reported, 18 were cancelled by weather and   21 went unreported. In Massachusetts the Club listed a total of 293 species, three less than last year on 190 reported trips. To put this in perspective, birders throughout the state recorded a total of 369 species during the year, thus the BBC total of 293 is 79% of all the species seen in 2009!

Two new species was added to the overall Brookline Bird Club list of birds. On the first day of Spring Laura and Mark’s Vernal Equinox trip recorded a total of seven ROSS’S GOOSE in Ipswich. Prior to this sighting there were only three accepted records of this species in the state. The Club encountered its first Pterodroma petrel, a BLACK-CAPPED PETREL that was around the boat for almost five minutes making two close passes as the Captain pursued and kept the bird visible for all on board to see. Another almost new bird was not one but two IVORY GULLS, the last time the Club recorded this species was in 1976.

The weather in 2009 was typical New England-if you don’t like it- just wait a minute! January was cold, New Years Day saw readings below zero in western Massachusetts and a low of 6 in Boston, February was on the warm side with not much snow. March sprung up like a lion on the first with a major nor’easter complete with heavy snow to all of New England. April was warm and wet-three temperature records were broken with 80’s to readings into the 90’s from April 28-30 which also brought unprecedented fallout of migrants as well as the foliage. May was also warm and dry but June and July were WET and cold with very little sunshine- June was the 7^th coldest in 138 years and had the second least amount of sun in 138 years. July was very wet- the 6^th wettest July on record and the month continued to be on the cool side. Finally summer arrived in August with very warm temperatures and not much rain. The fall migration was a mixed bag weather-wise-September was sunny but cold; October was quite cold with frequent rains. November was exceptional- unseasonably warm and dry- Thanksgiving Day saw the temperature reach over 50 and there was no frost in Boston until December 7^th, a new late record.

The sixth Annual Winter Meeting was held at Bedford Middle School on February 6, 2009. This was the Club’s Second Members Night, many members of our Club travel all over the world as well as in our own backyards taking excellent photographs and sharing their images with us. The Spring Meeting at the Harvard Museum of Natural History featured past BBC President Peter Alden whose talk entitled “The Ups and Downs of Inland Massachusetts Birds and Why” highlighted the changes in bird life in just a short period of time and included a lively discussion on invasive plants and whether to feed birds or not. The fall lecture meeting at Harvard featured Dr. Ian Newton, a population ecologist who discussed factors that have influenced migratory birds showing declines in numbers for several species and how conservation efforts can help.

Laura de la Flor and Mark Burns opened up the start of 2009 by leading their 13th annual New Year’s Day birding trip. Nineteen members came out on a frigid but dry day to begin a New Year of birding. The mercury was only 8 degrees as the bundled participants toasted  the new year with apple cider and the temperature never got higher than 18 all day! The trip tallied 58 species from Salisbury to Andrew’s Point. Highlights included a King Eider and a Dovekie at Bass Rocks as well as a Peregrine Falcon on the Gloucester City Hall and a Lapland Longspur in Salisbury.

Eddie Giles and Mark Burns led the Tenth Owl Prowl on the last day of February. The trip is an attempt to find by sight or sound all eight species of owls wintering in the state.  It was a rough day with northwest winds and rain and the getting tied up in traffic didn’t help. The group found six species of owls starting with a predawn Barred Owl in Salisbury and ending with  a Barn Owl on Martha’s Vineyard; the group missed both Long and Short-eared Owls

Eddie teamed up with Mary Kelleher on Sunday March 15 to lead the Club’s second Cape Cod Waterfowl Prowl. Like the owl prowl, the intent is to locate as many of the 29 species of ducks in one day on Cape Cod ponds .The leaders tallied 69 species and came up with 23 of the 29 duck species!  The Club scheduled Woodcock walks in Stoughton, Reading, and the Blue Hills. The Club continued co-sponsoring the TASL (Take a Second Look) surveys of the waterfowl of Boston Harbor and a Dawn Heron Census at Belle Isle Marsh in East Boston. Ongoing was a series of mid-week trips on Cape Ann in search for alcids led by Barbara Volke; Breeding Bird Surveys were conducted in Woburn, Ipswich River Sanctuary in Topsfield and in Moose Brook Valley, Hardwick. A weekend Campout at Wompatuck State Park had to be cancelled because of heavy rain, but three other trips there in the spring added some nice birds: Acadian Flycatcher, Cerulean and Worm-eating warblers and Louisiana Waterthrush.  Glenn d’Entremont led the weekend jaunt out in the Berkshires birding Mount Greylock on Saturday and October Mountain on Sunday where the Club recorded its only Olive-sided Flycatcher in Massachusetts for the year.

This year, the Club scheduled five pelagic trips; the trip scheduled for waters off Chatham in November was cancelled because of weather and high seas. These Extreme Pelagics as they are called are 18 hour marathons to the Continental Shelf waters about 100 miles south of Muskeget Island. The first trip to Atlantis Canyon on July 18 started off with heavy rain and a pretty rough sea that did calm down by afternoon. The highlight of this trip was the Club’s first Black-capped Petrel as mentioned earlier, other highlights included a new state high count of 19 Audubon’s Shearwaters and 58 Leach’s Storm Petrels. The major lowlight was seeing a Right Whale entangled in fishing gear south of Nantucket Shoals. The twice postponed August Extreme Pelagic finally set off midweek with 40 participants on September 3. This trip was a smashing success-smashing the state records for White-faced Storm-Petrel, Band-rumped Storm-Petrel, Bridled Tern and Long-tailed Jaeger. 

Summer trips are highlighted by evening trips to Plum Island searching for early migrating shorebirds and flocks of herons flying to roost as well as the annual Hawaiian Shirt Shorebird trip to South beach. Each summer Jane Lothian and Pam Perry have a Birds and Nature Journaling program at Mount Auburn Cemetery to practice field sketching. The fall migration starts off with a three day Cape Cod Blitz hitting the hot spots on the outer Cape from Chatham to Provincetown, a total of 101 species were seen including 8 Yellow-crowned Night Herons, the only ones reported all year on our trips. Tom Gagnon leads our members on the annual Hawk-watching trip to Mt Tom in Holyoke and Eddie Giles leads a moderate walk through the cornfields and mud of Cumberland Farms and other areas in the Middleboro area in search of all the sparrows

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  and this year stormy weather forced some counts to reschedule.

A special thank-you to the 66 leaders who guided our members throughout the year. There are several leaders deserving special mention. Ida Giriunas, led the most with 21 trips followed by Bill Drummond with 17 Jane Zanichkowsky with 15 trips, Bob Stymeist with 13, Glenn D’Entremont with 12, Jonathan Center led 11and Linda Ferreresso and Eddie Giles each led 10. Another ten dedicated leaders accounted for five or more trips each.

The Club visited Essex County most often, with a total of 81 scheduled trips seeing 231species-which is 79% of all the birds reported this year!  Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge was a distant second with 28 trips, eight trips fewer than last year and recorded 107 species. There were also 47 scheduled trips in the Metropolitan Boston area, 22 trips were scheduled in the extended Sudbury River Valley, which included Great Meadows NWR, Oxbow NWR, the Assabet NWR, and one to Bolton Flats. Twenty-seven trips to the South Shore and to areas on Cape Cod including four trips to the hot birding spot at Wompatuck State Park in Hingham. and nine trips to areas in Western Mass.

Out-of-state trips included a weekend trip to the Machias area and to the Highland Plantation and Rangeley Lakes region in Maine. 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. These Maine trips also added Northern Fulmar, Northern Goshawk, Sandhill Crane, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Philadelphia Vireo, Red Crossbill and Evening Grosbeak to the total list of birds seen on Club trips for 2009. Ida Giriunas led her 28^th annual Club trip to the Machias area which includes the famous Machias Seal Island and recorded over 4000 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. There were two trips scheduled in New Hampshire; on May 30 Bill Drummond led 13 members in search of Bicknell’s Thrush which was successful with four individuals seen and on November 1 Steve and Jane Mirick led their annual early winter trip along the coast, 15 members got to see a Eurasian Wigeon and a Common Murre along with 67 other species.

The Massachusetts Audubon Society (MAS) Checklist (10/2000) now includes all the species that have been identified in the state as determined by the Massachusetts Avian Records Committee (MARC). The Club recorded the following species that are listed on the new list as rare or as accidental species.

Ross’s Goose                                    Ipswich                                           March 21

Cackling Goose                                 Ipswich                                           November 8

Pacific Loon                                     Rockport                                          November 20

Black-capped Petrel                              Atlantis Canyon trip                           July 18

Audubon’s Shearwater                        Atlantis Canyon trip                           July 18

White-faced Storm-Petrel                    Hydrographer Canyon                        September 4

Leach’s Storm-Petrel                          Atlantis Canyon trip                           July 18

Band-rumped Storm-Petrel                  Hydrographer Canyon                        September 4

Long-tailed Jaeger                              Hydrographer Canyon                        September 4

Ivory Gull                                        Eastern Point, Gloucester                    January 19

Ivory Gull                                        Plymouth Harbor                               January 25

Bridled Tern                                     Atlantis Canyon trip                           September 4

Bohemian Waxwing                          Newburyport                                    January 17

Kentucky Warbler                              Quabbin Reservoir                             June 6

MacGillivray’s Warbler                      Boston Fenway                                 November 21

Yellow-headed Blackbird                    Salisbury                                         January 19

The following species occur with some regularity in Massachusetts but were missed by the Club during 2009: Redhead, Tricolored Heron, Northern Goshawk (seen in Maine), American Golden Plover, Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Western Sandpiper, Long-billed Dowitcher, Black-legged Kittiwake, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher (seen in Maine), Philadelphia Vireo (seen in Maine), Gray-cheeked Thrush and Seaside Sparrow.  In addition some other species that also occur each year but in limited time frames was missed: Connecticut Warbler, Clay-colored and Lark sparrows. One very special bird that was not recorded was the Eared Grebe, the first time in SIXTEEN years!

The biggest trip list this year was Bill Drummond’s trip on May 17 from Rowley to Newburyport and including Plum Island which recorded 131 species

January 1                       Salisbury-Cape Ann         58 species          Laura de la Flor and Mark Burns, leaders

January 4 (tie)                 Boston                          58 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

January 10 (tie)               Cape Ann                       58 species          Linda Ferraresso, leader

February 15                    Scituate-Plymouth           70 species          Glenn d’Entremont, leader

March 15                       Cape Cod Waterfowl        69 species          Eddie Giles and Mary Kelleher, leaders

April 26                         Boston                          90 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

May 17                          Rowley-Plum Island         131 species         Bill Drummond, leader

June 21                          October Mountain           75 species          Glenn d’Entremont, leader

July 13                          Plum Island                    64 species          Tom Young, leader

August 15                      South Beach                   51 species          Laura de la Flor and Mark Burns, leaders

September 12                  Wellfleet                        80 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

October 4                       Ipswich-Essex                 57 species          Tom Young, leader

November 8                   Fairhaven                       78 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

December 13                  Plum Island-Salisbury      40 species          Ida Giriunas, leader

The Club recorded 79% of all the birds that were noted during 2009-pretty impressive! A total of at least 369 species, five more than last year were observed and reported by birders across the state during 2009. Other noteworthy species seen during the year but not on the BBC list were: Pink-footed Goose, Greater White-fronted Goose, Tundra Swan, Common Shelduck, Tufted Duck, .White Pelican, White-tailed Tropicbird, White-faced Ibis, Wood Stork,  Swallow-tailed Kite, Golden Eagle, Eurasian Kestrel, Purple Gallinule, Black-necked Stilt, American Avocet, Curlew Sandpiper, Sabine’s Gull, Mew Gull, Slaty-backed Gull, Gull-billed Tern, Great and South Polar skuas, White-winged Dove, Chuck-will’s-widow, Allen’s Hummingbird, Black-backed Woodpecker, Say’s Phoebe, Scissor and Fork-tailed flycatchers, Brown-chested Martin, Varied Thrush,  Northern Wheatear, Townsend’s and Prothonotary warblers, Summer and Western tanagers, Henslow’s, LeConte’s and Golden-crowned  sparrows, and Common Chaffinch to name a few.

ANNUAL LISTS

There were so many great birds in 2009 it was difficult for anyone not to name multiple species  but the clear choice gathering the most votes in the top three was the Ivory Gull or should we say Ivory Gulls. The last Ivory Gull that was seen in Massachusetts for a period of time was back in 1976.For many of us old-timers it was the first time we saw an ADULT Ivory Gull, the bird in Salisbury 33 years ago was an immature as was another immature they stayed awhile in Portland Maine.

The Brown-chested Martin, discovered in the Cumberland Farm fields on October 12 was another top vote getter. This was only the second state record and only the SIXTH record for all of North America. The fusca race of the Brown chested Martin is an austral migrant that breeds in South America and then migrates north during the austral winter. This bird went a little off course, similar to another austral migrant- the Fork-tailed Flycatcher and landed in Massachusetts and not northern Venezuela!

A two way tie in the sparrow department between the Henslow’s Sparrow of Montague and the LeConte’s Sparrow of Cumberland Farms with the LeConte’s having the edge because it was paired with another favorite at the same time and place- the Lark Bunting. The Chaffinch, only the third ever in Massachusetts was listed by many as their favorite and especially if it’s in your own yard! Another multiple vote getter was the very cooperative Chuck-wills-widow that sat motionless on branches just feet away in Nahant, for some this was the first visual for a bird that previously was only a voice in the dark. The MacGillivray’s Warbler was particularly sweet affording some of the best looks of this elusive and rare western warbler.

Some of the other species that made birders smile included: Tufted Duck, White-faced Storm-Petrel, Purple Gallinule, Atlantic Puffin, Black Vulture, American Avocet, Red-headed Woodpecker and Yellow-breasted Chat to name a few. Memorable days in the field can be quite special as mentioned by our members:

“Having seen all eight owls on the Massachusetts Checklist plus seeing a Northern Hawk Owl and a Great Gray Owl in New Hampshire”

“Watching Chimney Swifts gathering sticks for nest building while in a kayak”

“An Avocet in full fig at Pikuls Pans”

“That perfect May fallout of passerines- in APRIL”

“First time seeing two Red-headed Woodpeckers in the same location”

“Salisbury’s egret roost as my outdoor, long-legged wader classroom”

“The chase for the Lark Bunting and LeConte’s Sparrow on a Saturday-we looking for birds to see, hunters looking for birds to shoot”

“Sharing an autumnal sunset counting waterfowl from the Tower at Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary”

“A Fox Sparrow at our ground feed, a Carolina Wren in the snow, memories just stretch on and on”

It always is interesting to see what the top listers miss, most often it is a regular migrant that has a limited time in passage like a Common Nighthawk or an Olive-sided Flycatcher or he or she fails to visit a well-known nesting site like a Roseate or Arctic Tern or an American Oystercatcher. The Brown-chested Martin was one that received a lot of votes. This bird was present for several days but was absent for long periods of time during the day. Some made several trips on all the days but still did not see it while others arrived and it was there.

For some it’s the same birds each year: Northern Goshawk, Ruffed Grouse, Ring-necked Pheasant, American Bittern, Lincoln’s Sparrow

Shorebirds were mentioned frequently: Buff-breasted and Baird’s Sandpiper, Oystercatcher, Upland Sandpiper, Wilson’s Phalarope and Long-billed Dowitcher.

Warblers: Louisiana Waterthrush, Cape May, Hooded Warbler but not Golden-winged-most of the birding community now regards this as super rare and wonders if another will be seen regularly in the state again.

“Missing the Club’s very first Black-capped Petrel- I’d just broken my ankle after being thrown around on deck during the storm, I was in a lot of pain just trying to stand up let alone seeing the bird too”

“The Black-backed Woodpecker on Nantucket, having been there awhile I was confident I might see it, I spent four hours in vain searching in all its known locations. It was an expensive miss with ferries and taxis as well as time and distance”

Other disappointing or embarrassing misses included: Blue-winged Teal, Black Scoter, Barrow’s Goldeneye, Ruddy Turnstone, American Woodcock, Forster’s Tern, both Yellow and Black-billed cuckoos, Common Raven, Cliff Swallow, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Philadelphia Vireo and Fox Sparrow to mention a few

Finally to quote Neil Hayward “This was my first full year properly birding in the US. Most of the birds were new, and all the locations were exciting new places- and a great way to see a lot of Massachusetts. It was a very memorable year, especially for all the wonderful people I met and who helped me improve my birding skills.” Yes Neil it was another great year and you are right-we have a great birding community who share their knowledge and sightings of birds throughout the year.

THE ANNUAL LISTS

John Hoye, Wayland                           323

Audrey McCarthy, Wayland                 317

Oakes Spalding, Cambridge                 312

Herman D’Entremont, Somerville         308

Glenn d’Entremont, Stoughton              303

Ida Giriunas, Reading                          301

Linda Ferraresso, Watertown                300

Bob Stymeist, Arlington                      292

Margo Goetschkes, Cambridge             287

Steve Grinley, Newburyport                 286

Neil Hayward, Cambridge                    284

Bev Chiasson, Newton                        282

Fred Bouchard, Belmont                      279

Chris Floyd, Lexington                        275

Doug Chickering, Groveland                273

Jonathan Center, Chelmsford                264

Tom Wetmore, Newburyport              258*

Doug Chickering, Groveland               228*

Laura de laFlor, Salem                        223

Jason Forbes, Waltham                    201**

* Plum Island Only, Tom saw 91% of all birds seen on Plum Island in 2009 (283)

** Middlesex County only, Jason saw 82% of all birds reported in Middlesex County in 2009 (246)

2007 STATISTICAL AND YEAR END REPORT

By Robert H. Stymeist, Statistician

During 2007, the Brookline Bird Club listed 309 species of birds on 213 reported trips, one species more than last year. A total of 245 trips were scheduled, 11 trips less than last year and 45 trips less than the all time high number of 290 in 2000. There were 66 all-day, 145 mornings, 27 afternoons or evening, six pelagic, and two weekend trips. Thirty-three trips were not reported, 12 were cancelled by weather and 21 went unreported. In Massachusetts the Club reported a total of 298 species, three less than last year on 206 trips. To put this in perspective, birders throughout the state recorded a total of 377 species during the year, thus the BBC total of 298 is 79% of all the species seen in 2007!

Two new species were added to the overall Brookline Bird Club list of birds. The Club recorded Little or Macaronesian Shearwater on the Hydrographer Canyon trip August 25. This species recently “split” off from several other small “black and white” shearwaters. According to Rick Heil most European ornithogists have accepted that these forms are distinct though the American Ornithogist Union (AOU) has not yet voted to accept the DNA research. A special trip to Newport Rhode Island and nearby areas on February 3 netted great looks at TWO Pink footed Geese on the grounds of the Newport Country Club as well as the only report of Cackling Goose in 2007.

For the birder the weather in 2007was a mixed bag.  January was unusually mild at the start of the month and ended very cold but the good part was there was just a little snow. February was sunny and dry but very cold, snow came from one storm on Valentine’s Day. March began with a Lion-Lamb truce but was quickly followed by record breaking cold weather and a nor’easter on the 16^th dumped over 10 inches of snow. April lived up to its reputation with frequent rain, some heavy and much more than average; a high of 86 on April 23 brought on the leaves! May was very warm but with too much rain. June was dry and a bit warmer than usual and July was quite cool with a lot of rain. August was hot with over six days reaching above 90 in Boston. September continued on the warm side and nice and dry for fall birding. Sparrow month, October was also mild and dry and 86 degrees on the 4^th broke the record for Boston. After starting out on the mild side November turned down-right cold which continued into December, a nor’easter on the 16-17^th disrupted many of the Christmas Bird Counts.

The fifth Annual Winter Meeting was held at Bedford High School on January 19, 2007. Cape Cod birder, Blair Nikula gave a fascinating and comprehensive presentation on the Seabirds of Antarctica. The talk entitled “Penguins, Petrels and Prions: An Antarctic Adventure,” was bases on Blair’s four week trip on a Russian ship helping gather data on seabird distribution. At our Annual Spring Meeting at Harvard’s Geological Lecture Hall, John Rogers, a co-founder of the New York State Bluebird Society talked about the life history of the Eastern Bluebird, his nest box management of an extensive Bluebird Trail which has fledged over 11,000 bluebirds! Mike O’Connor the jovial proprietor of the Bird Watcher’s General Store in Orleans had us laughing as he talked about his recently published book: “Why Don’t Woodpeckers Get Headaches” Mike shared some of the questions he has been asked over the years at his store.

Laura de la Flor and Mark Burns opened up the start of 2007 by leading their ELEVENTH annual New Year’s Day birding trip. Fourteen hardy members came out on a dismal day to begin a New Year of birding. The trip tallied just 38 species from Newburyport to finishing up at Jodrey Pier in Gloucester. Laura and Mark also led us through the seasons with a Vernal Equinox walk on March 24 all around outer Cape Cod, a Summer Solstice Saunter on June 23 and an Autumn Equinox walk on September 22.

The eighth annual Grand Slam Owl Prowl started out at 4:30AM on February 17. The goal of this trip is to locate, either by hearing or sight, all seven species of owls that are regularly found in mainland Massachusetts in one day. (Barn Owls are somewhat regular on Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket-but time and cost make it nearly impossible to include the Islands) This year was a marked improvement over the last few years and we ended the day with six species, just missing Saw-whet Owl, which was also missed by the Club all year! The Club also scheduled Woodcock walks in Reading, and the Blue Hills. The Club continued co-sponsoring the TASL (Take a Second Look) surveys of the waterfowl of Boston Harbor and a Dawn Heron Census at Belle Isle Marsh in East Boston. Ongoing was a series of mid-week trips on Cape Ann in search for alcids led by Barbara Volke; Breeding Bird Surveys were conducted in Woburn and in Moose Brook Valley, Hardwick. On August 18 heavy seas prevented Mark Burns and Laura de la Flor from leading the Hawaiian Shirt Shorebird Safari over to South Beach, though the group probably caught a few glances from other tourists as they birded the outer cape in tropical attire.

A Fall Hawk watch at Mt Tom by veteran hawk-watcher Tom Gagnon tallied eight species of raptors with 734 Broad-wings making quite a show. The group proceeded down to Arcadia Wildlife Sanctuary and had both Mourning and “killer” looks at a Connecticut Warbler. New this year was a three day Cape Cod Blitz, starting on Friday September 7 at Morris Island in Chatham, 12 members joined up for three full days of birding.  In the end the group tallied 117 species! 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 thirty-four count circles within Massachusetts.

This year, the Club scheduled six pelagic trips, one trip; the November 17 trip to Nantucket Shoals had to be cancelled because of high seas. Ida, our pelagic trip organizer, also added another unscheduled Hydrographer trip on August 19 when almost 70 participants enjoyed a record number of Audubon’s Shearwaters (17) and killer looks at FIVE Sperm Whales. The first trip to the offshore canyons on July 19 was highlighted by three Bridled Terns and six species of whales and dolphins. Every trip to these waters is an adventure in our discovery of new birds offshore- the trip on August 25 did in fact add a new species to the Massachusetts list of birds.- a LITTLE or MACARONESIAN SHEARWATER, which was photographer by many of the participants providing the first documented sight record for North America! Rounding out our pelagic birding were some half day trips to Stellwagen Bank and Jeffries Ledge

A special thank-you to the 65 leaders who guided our members throughout the year; several leaders deserve special mention. Bill Drummond and Ida Giriunas, two of our long term members led the most with 22 trips each followed by Linda Ferraresso with 13 trips, Soheil Zendeh and Bob Petersen followed with 12 trips each. , Glenn d’Entremont led 11 trips mostly on the south shore and Cape Cod and Bob Stymeist also led 11 trips both in the Boston area as well as Bristol and Barnstable counties. Laura de la Flor and Jane Zanichkowsky each led 10 trips. Another nine dedicated leaders accounted for five or more trips each.

The Club visited Essex County most often, with a total of 88 scheduled trips (49 to Newburyport/ Plum Island area, 20 to Cape Ann and 19 other spots in the county, including five trips to the Marblehead Neck Sanctuary).  Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge was a distant second with 37 trips which recorded 115 species. There were also 40 scheduled trips in the Metropolitan Boston area, 19 trips were scheduled in the extended Sudbury River Valley, which included six trips at Great Meadows NWR, four trips to Oxbow NWR, three trips to the Assabet NWR, and one visit to Bolton Flats. Twenty-seven trips to the South Shore and to areas on Cape Cod including two trips to the hot birding spot at Wompatuck State Park in Hingham. and eight trips to areas in Western Mass.

Out-of-state trips included a weekend trip to the Machias area and to Rangely Lakes in Maine. The combined total number of species on the Maine trips was 135 and included some boreal birds such as Spruce Grouse, Black-backed Woodpecker, Gray Jay and Boreal Chickadee. Totally unexpected was ZERO terns on Machias!! Both Ida Giriunas 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. There were three trips in New Hampshire, one along the coast in winter, and a trip to Pondicherry National Wildlife Refuge where a Black- backed Woodpecker nest was found. A trip to Appledore Island was cancelled due to bad weather. There was one special trip to Rhode Island where the Club added Pink- footed Goose, a new species for the Club list and this trip recorded the only Cackling Goose.

The Massachusetts Audubon Society (MAS) Checklist (10/2000) now includes all the species that have been identified in the state as determined by the Massachusetts Avian Records Committee (MARC). The Club recorded the following species that are listed on the new list as rare or as accidental species.

Greater White-fronted Goose               Concord                                           October 14

Barnacle Goose                                                                   Concord                     October 14

Eared Grebe                                                                     Gloucester                     January 6

Northern Fulmar                                                 Nantucket Shoals area         June 30

Little/ Macaronesian Shearwater       18 miles N of Veatch’s Canyon          August 25

Audubon’s Shearwater                        Hydrographer Canyon                        July 21

White-faced Storm-Petrel                    Hydrographer Canyon                        August 19

Leach’s Storm-Petrel                          Nantucket Shoals area                        July 21

Band-rumped Storm-Petrel                  Hydrographer Canyon                        August 25

Swainson’s Hawk                              Cumberland Farms                            October 6

King Rail                                         Plum Island                                      May 14

American Avocet                               Plum Island                                      May 13

Ruff/Reeve                                       Newburyport Harbor                          April 8

Long-tailed Jaeger                              Nantucket Shoals                               July 21

Bridled Tern                                     Hydrographer Canyon                        July 21

Gray Jay                                          Mt. Watatic                                      November 4

Yellow-throated Warbler                     Mt. Auburn Cemetery                        May 20

The following species occur with some regularity in Massachusetts but were missed by the Club during 2007: Northern Bobwhite, Cattle Egret, Northern Goshawk (seen in Maine), Baird’s Sandpiper, Long- billed Dowitcher, Black Skimmer, Thick-billed Murre, Parasitic Jaeger  Northern Saw-whet Owl and what unfortunately is becoming a trend- Golden-winged Warbler.

The biggest trip list this year was Bill Drummond’s trip around Essex County, recording 137 species on May 20. The best bird on that trip was an American Avocet, though the group had super looks at many warblers (20 species) that were feeding very low in the Old Pines area. The most species for the least amount of travel (a total of 12 miles by car in 10 hours) was a trip just along Sconticut Neck in Fairhaven that recorded a total of 77 species on September 18. 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 7                       Boston                         65 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

February 11                    Scituate-Plymouth           72 species          Glenn d’Entremont, leader

March 24                       Outer Cape Cod              66 species          Laura de la Flor, leader

April 29                         Boston                          93 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

May 20                          Newburyport area            137 species         Bill Drummond, leader

June 2                           Quabbin area                   97species           Eddie Giles & Mark Burns, leaders

July 9                            Plum Island                    70 species          Tom Young, leader

August 18                      Outer Cape Cod              65 species          Laura de la Flora & Mark Burns, leaders

September 9                   Provincetown-Truro         89 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

October 14                     Newburyport-PI               70 species          Bill Drummond, leader

November 17                  Bourne                          77 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

November 18                  Fairhaven (tie)                77 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

December 2                    Cape Ann                       47 species          Ian Davies, leader

The Club recorded 79% of all the birds that were noted during 2007-pretty impressive! A total of at least 377 species, four more than last year were observed and reported by birders across the state during 2007. Other noteworthy species seen during the year but not on the BBC list were: Tundra Swan, Tufted Duck, Brown Pelican, Black Vulture, Swallow-tailed and Mississippi kites, Golden Eagle, Yellow Rail, Purple Gallinule, Black-necked Stilt,Curlew Sandpiper, Calliope, Rufous and Black-chinned hummingbirds, Say’s Phoebe, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Sedge Wren, Northern Wheatear, Audubon’s, Townsend’s, Black-throated Gray, Prothonotary and Swainson’s  warblers, Summer Tanager, Lark and Harris’ sparrows and Yellow-headed Blackbird to name a few.

ANNUAL LISTS

The bird of the year for many was the Little Shearwater, this was the first ever recorded in New England, and with the many documented photographs will likely be the first accepted record in the United States since an individual was washed up on a beach in South Carolina way back in 1883. Imagine SIX species of shearwaters on the August 25^th Extreme Pelagic as Ida’s trips have been called. Other favorites from the offshore set were Band-rumped Storm Petrel (4), and Bridled Tern  (3). The Gray Jay was a crowd pleaser and the top vote getter from all that made the trip to the top of Mt Watatic. This was a fantastic year for winter finches, Pine Grosbeaks staged a mini invasion, something quite rare in recent times. The great flocks of Bohemian Waxwings and both Common and Hoary redpolls were a treat for birders in eastern Massachusetts and thus were most rewarding experiences. The Swainson’s Warbler on Plum Island garnered a few votes, albeit frustrating because of its secretive behavior- singing from an invisible perch in a restricted area! The Townsend’s Warbler in the busy neighborhood of Cambridgeport was a favorite as was the other Townsend- the Solitaire which had to be their best bird since it was #600 on their ABA list! SIX Black-necked Stilts all moving together in unison in a salt marsh in South Chatham was a favorite for several folks that never had seen more than one bird before in Mass. Speaking of firsts for Massachusetts- the Slaty-backed Gulls was noted as the best bird of the year as well as a life bird for those who never ventured far away to “New Hampshire” to see one there last year. Sometimes it’s the very good look you get- a Dovekie up close at Jodrey Pier, or a Yellow-breasted Chat that tees up in a small tree which is joined by an Orange-crowned Warbler and both STAY there for totally insane looks! Nothing better than having both a red and a gray Eastern Screech Owl take up residence in YOUR backyard. My favorite best bird nominee was the Eared Grebe of Niles Beach, grateful that it shows up each year- we’ll have to have a celebration of its life if it should die!

It always is interesting to see what the top listers miss; just like on a Big Day or a Christmas Bird Count there is often some bird that is common but completely missed. One top lister missed Black-billed Cuckoo- hard to do when you are out every weekend. The top vote getter was the Swainson’s Warbler on Plum Island- many heard it, heard it and heard it again for three days and never saw it. Black Skimmer was listed by several folks who tried often and heard that old refrain- you should have been here… Seven attempts to see one of the many Sandhill Cranes reported was especially frustrating as was the many trips to the Hawkwatch site in Truro looking for Mississippi Kite. With all the great birds seen on the pelagic trips one that just did not get seen was the Leach’s Storm Petrel, a first miss for many veteran pelagic birders. The Golden-winged Warbler once an easy bird to see has become quite hard to find and was listed by several as their most disappointing miss. Ruffed Grouse despite a concerted effort eluded one birder for the umpteenth year. Missing Arctic Tern for the first time in decades was another disconcerting miss. Coming onto Plum Island late in the day hoping to hear a Whip-poor-will was unfulfilled when the refuge ranger refused entry so late in the day. Connecticut Warbler always gets on the list- this year no exception as three folks listed it as a perennial miss. There were many road kill Barred Owls as well as many noted alive so it was hard to miss one on another 300 plus lister list. Breeding birds in the state are hard to swallow when you miss them: Seaside Sparrow, Cerulean Warbler and Acadian Flycatcher were a few that were mentioned as unnessceary misses.

All in all it was a very good year, really hard to complain and a great big thank-you to Massbird, the internet and the great group of birders who share their knowledge and their love of birding. Give yourself a round of applause!

John Hoye, Wayland                           336

Audrey McCarthy, Wayland                 331

Oakes Spalding, Cambridge                 330

Linda Ferraresso, Watertown                326

Steve Grinley, Newburyport                 322

Kevin Ryan, Easton                            321

Ida Giriunas, Reading                          320

Herman D’Entremont, Somerville         319

Margo Goetschkes                              318

Davis Noble, Marblehead                     318

Mollie Taylor, Danvers                        311

Glenn d’Entremont, Stoughton              311

Chris Floyd, Lexington                        310

Bev Chiasson, Newton                        303

Karsten Hartel, Arlington                     290

Bob Stymeist, Arlington                      287

George Gove, Southboro                      279

Fred Bouchard, Belmont                      273

Tom Wetmore                                  262*

Laura de la Flor, Salem                        243

Jonathan Center, Chelmsford                237

Shane Hunt, Brookline                        237

* Plum Island Only

2006 STATISTICAL AND YEAR END REPORT

By Robert H. Stymeist, Statistician

During 2006, the Brookline Bird Club listed 306 species of birds on 208 reported trips, one species more than last year. A total of 256 trips were scheduled, seven trips less than last year.  The all time high number of scheduled trips was 290 in 2000. There were 67 all-day, 147 mornings, 30 afternoons or evening, five pelagic, and two weekend trips. Forty-eight trips were not reported, 36 were cancelled by weather and 12 went unreported, the record-breaking rain during May and June was the major factor this year. In Massachusetts the Club reported a total of 301 species, four more than last year on 206 trips. To put this in perspective, birders throughout the state recorded a total of 373 species during the year, thus the BBC total of 301 is an astonishing 81% of all the species seen in 2006!

Three new species were added to the overall Brookline Bird Club list of birds. The Club recorded White-faced Storm Petrel on the Hydrographer Canyon trip August 26 A Bell’s Vireo on November 25 in Wood’s Hole and the Western Reef Heron in New Hampshire on September 3.

For the birder the weather in 2006 was a mixed bag.  January was unusually mild with below normal snow; February had wide temperature swings and a big snowstorm on the 12th; March came in like a Lion but was very dry; April was warm and dry with exceptionally warm temperatures at the end of the month advancing the foliage by two weeks; May was WET with nearly 13 inches of rain in the Boston area. The songbird migration was awful but the storm driven birds were awesome. June continued the extremely wet pattern setting a new high for a two consecutive month total rainfall. July was hot, August was cool and September through December was near normal to above normal in temperature as well as dry.

The fourth Annual Winter Meeting was held at Bedford High School on January 20, 2006. Phillip Hoose, a widely-acclaimed author gave a lively talk on his multi award winning book The Race to Save the Lord God Bird, a story on the extinction of the Ivory billed Woodpecker.  At our Spring Meeting at Harvard, David Bird, Professor of Wildlife Biology at McGill University of Montreal gave an entertaining program entitled “How Bird’s Do It”. And our Fall Meeting featured our own Norman Smith of Mass Audubon’s Trailside Museum who presented a program on Snowy Owls and Saw whet Owls that featured his assistants growing up with owls.

Laura de la Flor and Mark Burns opened up the start of 2006 by leading their TENTH annual New Year’s Day birding trip. Nineteen members enjoyed an almost perfect winter day with a dusting of new snow, no wind and an overcast sky that added some drama to the landscape. The trip tallied 61 species from Newburyport to finishing up at Dunback Meadow in Lexington. Laura and Mark also led us through the seasons with a Vernal Equinox walk on March 18, a Summer Solstice Saunter on June 24 and a Autumn Equinox walk on September 23.

The fifth annual Grand Slam Owl Prowl started out at 4AM on February 18. The goal of this trip is to locate, either by hearing or sight, all seven species of owls that are regularly found in Massachusetts in one day. Reports of Long-eared and Short-eared owls had been few and in the end those two species eluded the group. All five owls seen were photographed! The Club also scheduled Woodcock walks in Reading, and the Blue Hills. The Club continued co-sponsoring the TASL (Take a Second Look) surveys of the waterfowl of Boston Harbor and a Dawn Heron Census at Belle Isle Marsh in East Boston. On going was a series of mid-week trips on Cape Ann in search for alcids led by Barbara Volke; Breeding Bird Surveys at Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary, Salem Woods, Woburn and Dartmouth. On August 5 Mark Burns and Laura de la Flor led the now annual Hawaiian Shirt Shorebird Safari, 16 members in tropical attire tallied 51 species, which included 74 oystercatchers, 230 Willets, over 3000 Semipalmated Plovers and two Lesser Black-backed Gulls.

Fall Hawk watch locations included Mt Wachusett, Mt Watatic and Mt Tom, which had a very impressive flight of over 1200 Broad-winged Hawks as well as five Bald Eagles. On November 25 Glenn d’Entremont found a Bell’s Vireo on the grounds of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute on a trip that was co sponsored with the Cape Cod Birding Club. This was just the third record for the state and the first record not from Manomet Bird Observatory. This needless to say was a first for the Club as well as the throngs of birders that descended on the site the following day! New this year was a visit to the Wing Island Banding Station in Brewster, it was a slow day, and the leader wishing it was one day later when two Connecticut Warblers were netted! 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 thirty-four count circles within Massachusetts.

This year, the Club scheduled five pelagic trips. A scheduled trip to Hydrographer’s Canyon on August 26 was AGAIN a smashing success. The EXTREME PELAGIC as it has been called now for the third year in a row was again a most memorable trip for the 75 birders who departed Hyannis Harbor in the dark. We cruised the length of Hydrographer Canyon into water more than 4000 feet deep with the water temperature at 74F along the shelf edge. The trip followed the shelf edge for nearly twenty miles before setting course back across Nantucket Shoals and back to Hyannis arriving in the dark. Three WHITE-FACED STORM-PETRELS were found and the Captain followed them maneuvering the boat allowing fantastic views, a life bird for most of the birders on board. Another highlight was a distinctly smaller and slender shearwater that was readily picked out and observed from a roosting flock of Cory’s and Greater shearwaters. Many photos were taken and sent around to seabird experts with the possibility that the bird could be a Cape Verde Shearwater for which there is one record from off Cape Hatteras. The November pelagic, again organized by Ida Giriunas and led by Rick Heil and Steve Mirick was about as placid as could be for early winter. Sixty-five members enjoyed almost continuous groups of shearwaters, gannets, and kittiwakes. Before the boat left the dock there was a very early morning migration of loons; in about 30 minutes the group tallied over 130 Common and nearly 300 Red-throated Loons. At the edge of the shoals a spectacular flock of thousands of Greater Shearwaters, about 20 Northern Fulmars, Gannets and hundreds of Black-legged Kittiwakes were feeding along with Minke and lob-tailing and breaching Humback Whales!

A special thank-you to the 62 leaders who guided our members throughout the year; several leaders deserve special mention. Bill Drummond led the most with 26 trips followed by Steve Grinley with 18 trips, Ida Giriunas led 17 trips despite falling on the ice and snow in February at Dunback Meadow which put her in a cast for several weeks, Soheil Zendeh was listed as leader 16 times, Linda Ferreresso with 13, Glenn d’Entremont led 12 trips mostly on the south shore and Cape Cod and Bob Stymeist and Jonathan Center each led 11 trips. Laura de la Flor and Bob Petersen each led 10 trips. Another 11 dedicated leaders accounted for five or more trips each

The Club visited Essex County most often, with a total of 100 scheduled trips (60 to Newburyport/ Plum Island area, 20 to Cape Ann and 20 other spots in the County, including eight trips to the Marblehead Neck Sanctuary.)  Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge was a distant second with 27 trips which recorded 105 species There were also 40 scheduled trips in the Metropolitan Boston area, 15 trips were scheduled in the extended Sudbury River Valley, which included trips at Great Meadows NWR, Oxbow NWR, Bolton Flats and the new Assabet NWR. 20 trips to the South Shore and to areas on Cape Cod including three trips to the hot birding spot at Wompatuck State Park in Hingham. and 10 trips to areas in Western Mass. Out of state trips included a weekend trip to the Machias area and to Rangely Lakes in Maine. The combined total number of species on the Maine trips was 143 and included some Boreal birds such as Spruce Grouse, Black-backed Woodpecker, Gray Jay and Boreal Chickadee. Both Ida Giriunas 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. There were just two trips in New Hampshire with one trip especially targeted for the Bicknell’s Thrush that unfortunately was cancelled due to heavy rain. An extension of Bill Drummond’s September 3 to Portsmouth NH was successful in adding the Western Reef Heron to the Club list and yet another trip from Cape Ann on November 19 led by Bill extended up to Odiorne State Park and added Fork-tailed Flycatcher which put on quite a show as it fed in the bittersweet.

The Massachusetts Audubon Society (MAS) Checklist (10/2000) now includes all the species that have been identified in the state as determined by the Massachusetts Avian Records Committee (MARC). The Club recorded the following species that are listed on the new list as rare or as accidental species.

Pacific Loon                                     Cathedral Ledge, Rockport                  January 7

Pacific Loon                                     Hull (TASL trip)                                 January 29

Eared Grebe                                      Gloucester                                        January 7

Northern Fulmar                               at sea                                              July 8

Audubon’s Shearwater                        at sea                                              August 26

Leach’s Storm-Petrel                          at sea                                              August 26

White-faced Storm-Petrel                    at sea                                              August 26

King Rail                                         Plum Island                                      May 31

Sandhill Crane                                  Cumberland Farms                            October 8

Black-tailed Godwit                           Plum Island                                      July 17

Ash-throated Flycatcher                      Halibut Point, Rockport                      December 13

Bell’s Vireo                                      Woods Hole                                     November 25

Bohemian Waxwing                          Halibut Point                                    January 7

Kentucky Warbler                              MNWS                                            May 7

The following species occur with some regularity in Massachusetts but were missed by the Club during 2006: Least Bittern, Yellow-crowned Night Heron, Marbled Godwit, Short-eared Owl, Common Nighthawk, White-eyed Vireo, Golden-winged, Cerulean and Connecticut warblers.

The biggest trip list this year was Bill Drummond’s trip around Essex County, recording 110 species on May 27. In Bill’s notes he states “It was a fine day at Plum Island with some of the best birding in the thickets opposite the salt panes. It took over an hour to get the 50 participants on the Mourning Warbler at that location with everyone getting to see ALL the birds including a Philadelphia Vireo and a Mourning Warbler”.  Bill was able to show the fifty participants 10 species of shorebirds, and 17species of warblers. The most species for the least amount of travel was a trip totally within the town of Wellfleet that recorded a total of 80 species on September 16. 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 7                       Westport                       77 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

February 19                    Cape Ann                       55 species          Linda Pivacek, leader

March 26                       Western Mass                 47 species          Ida Giriunas, leader

April 15                         Newburyport area            62 species          Steve Grinley, leader

May 27                          Newburyport area            110 species         Bill Drummond, leader

June 4                           Newburyport area            88species           Steve Grinley, leader

July 1                            Quabbin Gate 10             51 species          Glenn d’Entremont, leader

August 20                      Newburyport area            69 species          Steve Grinley, leader

September 17                  Provincetown-Truro         87 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

October 29                     Newburyport-PI               60 species          Steve Grinley, leader

November 4                   Bourne                          77 species          Bob Stymeist, leader

December 10                  Newburyport-PI               65 species          Steve Grinley, leader

The Club recorded nearly 81% of all the birds that were noted during 2006-pretty impressive! A total of at least 373 species, 13 more than last year were observed and reported by birders across the state during 2006. Other noteworthy species seen during the year but not on the BBC list were: Greater White-fronted Goose, Cackling Goose, Tundra Swan, Eurasian Wigeon, Western Grebe, Yellow-nosed Albatross, White and Brown pelicans, Magnificent Frigatebird, White Ibis, Black Vulture, Swallow-tailed and Mississippi kites, Golden Eagle, Gyrfalcon, Purple Gallinule, Black-necked Stilt (Bill Drummond extended his Plum Island trip but missed it), Curlew Sandpiper, Ruff, Royal Tern, Dovekie, Red-headed Woodpecker, and Green-tailed Towhee to name a few.

ANNUAL LISTS

The Yellow Rail that was discovered in the marshes known as Plum Bush by Ron Lockwood on October 9 was the top vote getter of five birders who sent in their lists. This was truly amazing that the bird was even re-found and that it was seen so well and photographed. The birders slogged through waist high water, some tripping, falling, getting their binos wet but all were most satisfied seeing this truly elusive bird. Ida Giriunas, the Energizer Bunny as I like to call her managed to get out there with the aid of two ski poles and see this bird through Chris Floyd’s scope. Chris was ecstatic with this bird, which he never dreamed of seeing in Massachusetts and his greatest experience was re-finding it for so many birders. It always is exciting when you find a good bird and then being able to share it with everyone; the Bell’s Vireo located by Glenn d’Entremont in Woods Hole was his most memorable find and on a Club trip no less. Spotting the first Northern Fulmar on a Club pelagic was especially rewarding for another birder. Finding my own Sandhill Crane at Bolton Flats after missing others. One birder heard the song of a Bicknell’s Thrush on Mt Greylock in July; this bird used to be standard fare when Lee Jameson ran the Greylock camping weekend thirty plus years ago, it has been absent now for as many years there. The White-faced Storm-Petrel gathered several votes as a favorite and no wonder- three of these were seen on the extreme pelagic at close range on a calm sea! A quick trip to Martha’s Vineyard for a Gray Kingbird that spent only two days on the island was mentioned as their best bird.  Rare among warblers a Cape May in top plumage was present for several days affording “killer looks at eye level at the Boston Nature Center in Mattapan. Another spring nor’easter brought a great tern show at Sandy Point on Plum Island. Other birds that made folks smile were Black-tailed Godwit, Black-necked Stilt, Rufous Hummingbird, Bell’s Vireo, LeConte’s Sparrow, Green-tailed Towhee and the White-tailed Hawk even if it was an escape were also mentioned.

The Western Reef Heron also got a few votes even though it was in New Hampshire.

It always is interesting to see what the top listers miss; just like on a Big Day or a Christmas Bird Count there is often some bird that is common but completely missed. One birder missed Eastern Screech Owl, another Ruffed Grouse- both common breeding birds in the right areas. Cape May warbler was on several lists; this bird used to be common but has been in steady decline for a number of years. Another warbler, the Golden-winged has become extremely rare and now is almost thought as likely as a Townsend’s or Hermit warbler. Other misses include Long-eared Owl, Rough-legged Hawk, Northern Goshawk (3 lists), Olive-sided Flycatcher, Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Connecticut and Mourning warblers, LeConte’s Sparrow. Of course many birders lamented not being at Plum Bush to tell their story about getting very wet to see a Yellow Rail!

John Hoye, Wayland                           325

Audrey McCarthy, Wayland                 321

Oakes Spalding, Cambridge                 319

Herman D’Entremont, Somerville         311

Glenn d’Entremont, Stoughton              308

Chris Floyd, Lexington                        308

Steve Grinley, Newburyport                 307

Linda Ferraresso, Watertown                304

Karsten Hartel, Arlington                     298

Davis Noble, Marblehead                     290

Bob Stymeist, Arlington                      276

Jonathan Center, Chelmsford                275

Fred Bouchard, Belmont                      269

Laura delaFlor, Salem                         234

Ida Giriunas, Reading                          196

2005 Statistical and Year End Report

By Robert H. Stymeist, Statistician

During 2005, the Brookline Bird Club listed 305 species of birds on 228 reported trips, six species less than the previous year. To put this in perspective, birders throughout the state recorded a total of 360 species (the same number as in 2004) during the year; thus the BBC  total of 304 is an astonishing 85% of all the species seen in 2005! A total of 263 trips were scheduled, two trips more than the previous year but 27 trips fewer than the all-time high of 290 for the Club during 2000. There were 73 all-day, 147 morning, 40 afternoon or evening, and  three weekend trips. One additional trip was scheduled with the appearance of two rare birds on Nantucket in January. Thirty-six trips were not reported, 21 of which were cancelled by weather, leaving just 15 unreported, a big improvement over the year 2001 when 44 trips went unreported. In Massachusetts, the Club reported a total of 297 species, five less than the previous year, on 223 trips.

Three new species were added to the overall Brookline Bird Club list of birds. A California Gull and a White-winged Dove were seen on an impromptu trip to Nantucket on January 9 led by President Joe Paluzzi. A Cackling Goose, recently elevated to a full species, was added to the Club list on August 14 on an extended Newburyport trip led by Steve Grinley that ended up at Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge.

In 2005, the Club scheduled seven pelagic trips, up one from the previous year but down from 13 in 2000. A scheduled trip to Hydrographer Canyon on August 27 was a smashing success. The “Extreme Pelagic”, as it has been called now for the second year in a row, was again a most memorable trip for the 77 birders who departed Hyannis Harbor in the dark at 4 am. Unlike

the previous year when we never made it to our destination, this year we cruised the length of Hydrographer Canyon into water more than 4000 feet deep and with a water temperature of 79 degrees F. We got to the edge of Veatch’s Canyon before heading back to Hyannis via Nantucket Shoals. One of the highlights was the bird that nobody saw until all the photos were checked. Glen Tepke took some pictures of a suspicious looking Leach’s Storm-Petrel, which clearly was identified as a Band-rumped Storm Petrel. The quality of digital photography has once again added another rarity that might have gotten away! Another frustrating moment on this trip was a distant sighting of a small whitish Sulid with blackish primaries that could not be pinned down for identification. The show of dolphins in the warm waters, riding the bow, was truly amazing and participants were rewarded with great looks at three or more giant Leatherback Turtles. The November pelagic trip, again organized by Ida Giriunas and led by Rick Heil and Steve Mirick, was about as placid as could be for early winter. Seventy members enjoyed almost continuous groups of shearwaters, gannets, and kittiwakes. Pomarine Jaegers flew close by along with two or three Northern Fulmars, giving the group great views. On the return trip there were over 1200 Gray Seals hauled out on South Monomoy -a great way to end a fabulous trip.

The third Annual Winter Meeting was held at Bedford High School on January 28, 2005. Club member Jim Berry gave a lively talk entitled “Jim Berry’s Adventures in Western North America”. At our Spring Meeting at Harvard, John Kricher of Wheaton College gave an interesting program entitled “A Bird’s Eye View of Migration”. Dr. Kricher presented some new information on global warming and how it may affect migratory patterns. And at our Fall Meeting at Harvard, Don Kroodsma, Professor Emeritus at University of Massachusetts and author of The Singing Life of Birds, engaged us with a slideshow and recordings of birdsong and got us to think about why birds sing.

The Club continued to conduct a Nature Journaling trip in July focused on sharpening observation skills and practicing field sketching. The sixth annual Grand Slam Owl Prowl started out at 4 a.m. on February 28. The intent of this trip is to locate, either by hearing or sight, all eight species of owls that are regularly found in Massachusetts. This year, the elements conspired against us. After almost two weeks of mild temperatures, the mercury dropped to 9 degrees at our 3 a.m. start. Now combine this with a strong wind and the air was about 20 degrees below zero; by 3 p.m. the cold had taken its toll and we threw in the towel with just four species of owls. The Club also scheduled Woodcock walks in Reading, the Blue Hills, Concord, and the Great Meadows in Lexington. The Club continued co-sponsoring the TASL (Take a Second Look) surveys of the waterfowl of Boston Harbor and a Spring Hawk watch at Plum Island. Expanding out from birds, Dave Small conducted a Breeding Bird and Biodiversity day in the wilds of Royalston. Teaming up with Eddie Giles, Dave also led a Birds, Butterflies and Dragonflies trip in August by kayak. Laura de la Flor and Mark Burns opened up the start of 2005 by leading their ninth annual New Year’s Day birding trip. Forty-two BBCers enjoyed the clear warm day and tallied 59 species from Newburyport to Cape Ann. Laura and Mark also led us through the seasons with a Vernal Equinox walk on March 19 and a Summer Solstice Saunter on June 18.

A special thank you goes out to the 71 leaders who guided our members throughout the year. Several leaders deserve special mention. Ida Giriunas, the Energizer Bunny, led the most with 23 trips; Bill Drummond came in a close second with 22 trips, followed by Steve Grinley with 19 trips and Linda Ferraresso with 16 trips. Soheil Zendeh was listed as leader 14 times and Bob Stymeist and Barbara Volke each led 11 trips. Another 14 dedicated leaders accounted for five or more trips each. On October 15, the Club’s Board of Directors hosted a Leader Appreciation Day at Wompatuck State Park in Hingham. Despite the rain and chilly weather, the day was enjoyed by all. 

The Club visited Essex County most often, with a total of 111 scheduled trips: 86 to the Newburyport/ Plum Island area and Cape Ann and 25 to other spots in the county, including nine trips to the Marblehead Neck Sanctuary. Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge was a distant second with 35 trips. There were also 43 scheduled trips in the Metropolitan Boston area and 20 trips in the extended Sudbury River Valley, which included Great Meadows NWR, Oxbow NWR, Bolton Flats, and the new Assabet NWR. There were 24 trips to the South Shore and to areas on Cape Cod and 14 trips to areas in Western Massachusetts. Out of state trips included a weekend trip to the Mathias area and to Rangeley Lakes in Maine. The combined total number of species on the Maine trips was 135 and included some Boreal birds such as Spruce Grouse, Black-backed Woodpecker, Gray Jay and Boreal Chickadee. Both Ida Giriunas 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. Also, there were three trips in New Hampshire, with one trip specially targeted for Bicknell’s Thrush.

The Massachusetts Audubon Society (MAS) Checklist (10/2000) now includes all the species that have been identified in the state as determined by the Massachusetts Avian Records Committee (MARC). The Club recorded the following species that are listed on the new list as rare or as accidental species.

Cackling Goose                       Great Meadows NWR             August 14

Eared Grebe                            Gloucester                              March 13

Audubon’s Shearwater           at sea                                      August 27

Leach’s Storm-Petrel              at sea                                      August 27

Band-rumped Storm-Petrel    at sea                                      August 27

W!lson’s Plover                       South Beach, Chatham           August 6 

California Gull                         Nantucket                               January 9

White-winged Dove                Nantucket                               January 9

White-winged Dove                Mt. Auburn                             April 22

Western Kingbird                    Scituate                                   November 5

The following species occur with some regularity in Massachusetts but were missed by the Club dming 2005: Yellow-crowned Night Heron, Northern Goshawk, Black Skimmer, Long-eared Owl, Northern Saw-whet Owl, White-eyed Vireo, Gray-cheeked Thrush, Cape May Warbler, Dickcissel, Lark Sparrow, Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow, and Lapland Longspur.

The biggest trip list this year was Bill Drummond’s trip around Essex County, recording 137 species on May 28. In Bill’s notes he states “It was a wonderful birding day with everyone getting to see ALL the birds, including a Philadelphia Vireo and a Mourning Warbler”. Bill was able to show the thirty participants 13 species of shorebirds and 21 species of warblers. The trip also reported the only Cattle Egret of the year. The most species for the least amount of travel was a trip totally within the town of Wellfleet that recorded a total of 83 species on September 10. 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.

Date                Location                                  # species         Leader

January 1         Plum Island-Salisbury             59                    Laura de la Flor, Mark Burns 

February 8       Scituate-Plymouth                  71                    Glenn d’Entremont 

March 20        Newburyport-Cape Ann         55                    Phil Brown, Linda Ferraresso 

April 24           Mt.Auburn-Newburyport       64                    Ida Giriunas

May28             Newburyport area                  137                  Bill Drummond           

June 4              Quabbin area                          96                    Eddie Giles, Mark Burns

July 18             Plum Island                             61                    Bill Drummond

August 24        Newburyport area                  87                    Steve Grinley

September 10  Wellfleet                                 83                    Bob Stymeist

October 30      Newburyport-Pl                      70                    Steve Moore

November 19 Bourne                                    76                    Bob Stymeist

November 20 Fairhaven                                76                    Bob Stymeist

December 11 Newburyport-PI                      60                    Steve Grinley

The Club recorded nearly 85% of all the birds that were noted during 2005 – pretty impressive! A total of at least 360 species, the same number as the previous year, was observed and reported by birders across the state during 2005. Other noteworthy species seen during the year but not on the BBC list were: Greater White-fronted Goose, Barnacle Goose, Tundra Swan, Western Grebe, Yellow-nosed Albatross, Black-capped Petrel, White Pelican, Magnificent Frigatebird, White-faced Ibis, Swallow-tailed and Mississippi kites, Purple Gallinule, Little Stint, Franklin’s Gull, Mew Gull, Rufous Hummingbird, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Bell’s Vireo (first state record), Northern Wheatear, Townsend’s Solitaire, Sage Thrasher, Black-throated Gray, Townsend’s, and MacGillivray’s warblers and Painted Bunting, to name a few.

2004 Statistical and Year-End Report

By Bob Stymiest, Club Statistician

During 2004, the Brookline Bird Club listed 311 species of birds on 243 reported trips, 17 species more than last year. To put this in perspective, birders throughout the state recorded a total of 360 species during the year: thus the BBC total of 311 is an astonishing 86% of all the species seen in 2004! A total of 261 trips were scheduled, six trips fewer than last year and 17 fewer than the all-time high of 290 for the Club during 2000. There were 69 all-day, 162 morning, and 29 afternoon or evening trips. Also, there were three weekend trips compared with just one weekend trip the previous year. Twenty-eight trips were not reported, 16 of which were cancelled by weather, leaving just 12 unreported, a big improvement over 2001 when 44 trips went unreported. In Massachusetts the Club reported a total of 302 species, 14 more than last year, on 234 trips.

One new species was added to the overall Brookline Bird Club list of birds. A Red-footed Falcon, the first confirmed record for Massachusetts, as well as for North America, was seen on a diverted and extended South Beach trip on August 14 led by Eddie Giles and Mark Burns. Vernon Laux, birder extraordinaire from Martha’s Vineyard, first noticed this bird on August 8 and was puzzled by this hovering raptor over the fields of Katama Airport. Originally, he thought it was an immature Mississippi Kite, a first “live” sighting for the Vineyard, as Vernon had found a dead Mississippi Kite on the island in May 1985. He alerted some of the island birders to come take a look, but he continued to be puzzled. Fortunately, Sally Anderson, a birder who lives on the island, was able to get some pictures. The pictures were sent to Jeremiah Trimble in the Ornithology Department at Harvard. Jeremiah immediately thought that it was a Red-footed Falcon and not knowing if the bird was still there, he dropped everything and prepared to head for the Vineyard. l was lucky to be at the Museum and so joined him along with Peter Trimble and Peter Alden to go search for the bird. On our way down, Vernon called our cell phone and told us that the bird was still at Katama and that he would meet us at the ferry. Jeremiah was able to get some incredible shots and I took a lot of video. His photos were on the Internet on August 11 and on the front page of the New York Times and other major newspapers by August 12. On Saturday, the first weekend day after the discovery, an army of birders stormed the island. Complete with cameras and telescopes, birders lined the roads along the fields of the small Katama airfield to see this beautiful vagrant. Over 1000 birders were on the island by noontime, including our BBC group led by Eddie Giles, who was to be leading the Hawaiian Shirt Shorebird Safari on South Beach. We were certainly the most colorful of all the observers. The original South Beach trip was not cancelled, as Mark Bums led 11 other members over to the beach and recorded 42 species including 29 American Oystercatchers, 65 Willets, 67 Hudsonian Godwits, a Caspian Tern, and 15 Black Skimmers. After the trip, Mark and many of the participants headed over to the Vineyard and added the falcon to the list at 6:20 p.m. that evening!

In 2004, the Club scheduled six pelagic trips, up from just two the previous year but down from 13 in 2000. Pelagics can be unpredictable and only 25 species were tallied on the four reported trips. A scheduled trip to Hydrographer Canyon on August 28 was a smashing success. The “Extreme Pelagic”, as it was called, was a remarkable adventure for the eighty birders who departed Hyannis Harbor in the dark at 4 a.m. The trip never made it to the original destination, as satellite images revealed lower water temperatures at Hydrographer; however, just west at Veatch’s Canyon the water temperatures were almost 80 degrees, so the Club headed there. It was a great day on the open sea, clear with seas running 2-4 feet, and the birding was fantastic! Everyone enjoyed the extraordinary views of some of the least-observed pelagics, such as Audubon’s Shearwater, Band-Rumped Storm-Petrel, Great and South Polar Skuas and Bridled Tern both flying alongside the boat and perched on floating wood. Not only were there great birds but several Basking Sharks, two Hammerhead and one Blue Shark and hundreds of flying fish were there to watch as well.

The second Annual Winter Meeting was held at Bedford High School on January 30, 2004. Wayne Petersen gave a lively talk entitled “A World of Seabirds”. At our Spring Meeting at Harvard, Andrew Farnsworth of Cornell gave an interesting program on radar ornithology and on the different nocturnal calls the migrants use on migration.

The Club continued to conduct a workshop on waterfowl in November and a Nature Journaling trip in July focused on sharpening observation skills and practicing field sketching. The fifth annual Grand Slam Owl Prowl started out at 4 a.m. on February 28. The intent of this trip is to locate, either by hearing or sight, all eight species of owls that are regularly found in Massachusetts. The severe winter had a devastating effect on the state’s Barn Owl population so the leaders opted out of a trip to Martha’s Vineyard; thus the hope was for seven owl species in 18 hours. The highlight was a Northern Saw-whet Owl found at Bradley Palmer State Park. This little owl buzzed the group twice, nearly missing one member’s head by a foot! He then went into a pine tree and began calling and scolding us for disturbing his day. The trip ended up seeing four species. The Club also scheduled Woodcock walks in Reading, the Blue Hills, Concord, Magnolia and the Great Meadows in Lexington. The Club continued co-sponsoring the TASL (Take a Second Look) surveys of waterfowl of Boston Harbor and a Spring Hawk watch at Plum Island. Expanding out from birds, Dave Small conducted a Breeding Bird and Biodiversity day in the wilds of Royalton. Teaming up with Eddie Giles, Dave also led a Birds, Butterflies and Dragonflies trip in August. Laura de la Flor led us through the seasons with a Vernal Equinox walk on March 20 and a Summer Solstice Saunter on June 19.

A special thank you goes out to the 74 leaders who guided our members throughout the year. Several leaders deserve special mention. Steve Grinley led the most with 28 trips, Bill Drummond led 21 trips, Ida Giriunas, the Energizer Bunny, led 22 trips, and Linda Ferraresso led 11 trips. Soheil Zendeh was listed as a leader 17 times. Another 15 dedicated leaders accounted for five or more trips each.

The Club visited Essex County most often, with a total of 128 trips: 71 to Newburyport and Plum Island area, 24 to Cape Ann, 18 to other spots in the county, and 15 trips to the Marblehead Neck Sanctuary and areas nearby. Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge was a distant second with 39 trips. There were also 35 scheduled trips in the Metropolitan Boston area; 20 trips in the extended Sudbury River Valley, which includes Oxbow NWR, Bolton Flats, and Devens RFTA; 25 trips to the South Shore and to areas on Cape Cod; and 14 trips to areas in Western Massachusetts. Out of state trips included weekend trips to the Machias area and to Rangeley Lakes in Maine, and two trips in New Hampshire.

The Massachusetts Audubon Society (MAS) Checklist (10/2000) now includes all the species that have been identified in the state as determined by the Massachusetts Avian Records Committee (MARC). The Club recorded the following species that are listed on the new list as rare or as accidental species:

• Pacific Loon                           Cape Ann                                February 29
• Eared Grebe                            Gloucester                               January 3
• Audubon’s Shearwater            at sea                                       August 28
• Leach’s Storm-Petrel              at sea                                       August 28
• Band-rumped Storm-Petrel    at sea                                       August 28
• White Ibis                               Mashpee                                  May 29
• Great Skua                              at sea                                       August 28
• South Polar Skua                    at sea                                       August 28
• Sabine’s Gull                           South Beach                            July 31
• Bridled Tern                           at sea                                       August 28
• Red-footed Falcon                  Katama, Martha’s Vineyard    August 14
• American Avocet                    East Boston                             September 26
• Chuck-will’s-widow               Wellfleet                                 May 30
• Ash-throated Flycatcher         Rockport                                 November 27
• Western Tanager                     Brewster                                  February 15

The following species occur with some regularity in Massachusetts but were missed by the Club during 2004: Redhead, Yellow-Crowned Night Heron, Clapper Rail, Marbled Godwit, Little Gull, Arctic Tern (recorded on Maine trip), Black Tern, Cape May Warbler, Blue Grosbeak, Lark Sparrow, Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow, and Seaside Sparrow. Also missing this year were Greater White-fronted Goose, Tufted Duck, Northern Fulmar, Ruff, Red Phalarope, Common Murre, Thick-billed Murre, Common Barn Owl, Western Kingbird, Red and White-winged Crossbills (both recorded on Maine trips).

The biggest trip list this year was Bill Drummond’s trip around Essex County, recording 103 species on May 15. In Bill’s notes he states “we probably would have had more birds if we hadn’t spent the first and last hour of the trip looking for the elusive Golden-Winged Warbler”. Bill recorded 11 species of shorebirds, and 18 species of warblers, including a Kentucky. The most species for the least amount of travel was a trip totally within the town of Wellfleet that recorded a total of 85 species on September 14. 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.

 Date               Location                                 # species         Leader  

January 1         Plum Island-Salisbury            63 species       Laura de la Flor and Mark Burns

February 8       Scituate-Plymouth                  64 species       Glenn d’Entremont

March 20         Newburyport -Cape Ann        53 species       Laura de la Flor and Mark Bums

April 17           lRWS-Newburyport                62 species        Peter and Fay Vale

May 15            Newburyport area                   103 species      Bill Drummond

June 19            Essex County                          89 species       Laura de la Flor and Mark Burns

July 5              Plum Island                             62 species       Tom Young

August 29       Newburyport area                   70 species       Bill Drummond

September 11 Wellfleet                                 85 species       Bob Stymeist

October 3        Boston                                     85 species       Bob Stymeist

November 15 Marshfield-Plymouth               7I species        Glenn d’Entremont

December 11   Cape Ann                                41 species       Bob Petersen

The Club recorded nearly 86% of all the birds that were noted during 2004 – pretty impressive! A total of at least 360 species, two less than the previous year, was observed and reported by birders across the state during 2004. Other noteworthy species seen during the year were: Ross’s Goose, Barnacle Goose, Tundra Swan. Trumpeter Swan (not accepted by MARC – origin unknown). White-faced Storm-Petrel, Red-billed Tropicbird, White Pelican, Mississippi Kite, Rufous Hummingbird, Townsend’s Solitaire and Painted Bunting, to name a few.

2003 STATISTICAL AND YEAR END REPORT

By Robert H. Stymeist, Statistician

During 2003, the Brookline Bird Club listed 294 species of birds on 242 reported trips, 13 species fewer than last year. A total of 273 trips were scheduled, six trips fewer than last year

and 17 fewer than the all-time Club high of 290 during 2000. There were 71 all-day, 170 morning, 31 afternoon or evening, and just one weekend trip, compared with four weekend trips last year. Thirty-one trips were not reported, 20 of which were cancelled due to weather, leaving just 11 unreported, a big improvement over 2001 when 44 trips went unreported. In

Massachusetts the Club reported a total of 288 species, 23 fewer than last year, on 237 trips.

Three new species were added to the overall Brookline Bird Club list of birds but only one was seen in Massachusetts. A Cave Swallow, the first confirmed record for Massachusetts, was seen on a Cape Cod trip on November 15 led by Bob Stymeist. J. & P. Trimble and B. Nikula discovered the Cave Swallows. A cell phone call sent us from Bourne right down to Nauset Beach where we had excellent looks at one Cave Swallow. It ·was quite a scene on the beach with high fives and a lot of merriment. In New Hampshire, the Club recorded a Little Stint on a Newburyport extension to Rye led by Donald Wilkinson. Don’s car died on Plum Island that day, so his group decided to car pool up to Rye and was successful in adding this rare peep to the Club list. Not only was Don rewarded with the stint, AAA towed his car back to Nahant for free! On November 2, Steve Moore and Barbara Volkle extended a Newburyport trip up to Exeter, New Hampshire to record a Bell’s Vireo that had been previously found by Steve Mirick. Steve himself led 22 members on a trip along the New Hampshire coast on November 9, the day after the BBC 90^th celebration. They celebrated with another look at the vireo.

In 2003, the Club scheduled six pelagic trips, up from just two last year but down from 13 in 2000. Pelagics can be unpredictable and only 49 species were tallied on the five reported trips. A scheduled trip to Cashes Ledge on September 8 was forced to go to closer Platt’s Bank because of strong northeast winds and heavy seas. The conditions improved dramatically with a wind shift in the afternoon to the west. The birds were few but a juvenile Atlantic Puffin provided outstanding views for all on board.

The year 2003 marked the 90th Anniversary of the Brookline Bird Club and we celebrated in grand style at the Peabody Marriott Hotel on Saturday, November 8th. Over 300 members

attended the gala, a wonderful night, also highlighted by a penumbra! eclipse of the full moon that lasted all evening. The evening captured images on film of our favorite birding places

and our birding friends, some from their very early days, and some from those that touched our lives before they passed on. The collection of bird photographs, some rare and unusual

birds to our familiar everyday birds, delighted us as they popped onto the two big screens. Shawneen Finnegan, the keynote speaker and world-class birder, in her talk “Confessions of a Female Birding Addict”, put us into her whirlwind life in search of birds throughout the world. The evening topped off with emcee Eddie Giles hosting “Who Wants To Be A Birder”. Regis Philbin, watch out-if the networks find Eddie – you’re through!

In our 90th year, the Club added a third indoor meeting. The first Annual Winter Meeting was held at Bedford High School on January 31, 2003. Paul Roberts gave a lively talk entitled “Birding Southeastern Texas in Winter”. The Club continued to conduct a workshop on warblers in April and a Nature Journaling trip in July focused on sharpening observation skills and practicing field sketching. The fourth annual Grand Slam Owl Prowl started at 4 a.m. on March 8. The intent of this trip is to locate, either by hearing or sight, all eight species of owls that are regularly found in Massachusetts. The severe winter had a devastating effect on the state’s Barn Owl population so the leaders opted out of a trip to Martha’s Vineyard; thus the hope was for seven owl species in 18 hours. Ironically, the group failed to find a Screech Owl, our most common owl. For the second year, there was a series of mid-week trips in search of alcids and seabirds led by Barbara Volkle on Cape Ann, and a Birds and Breakfast on Cape Cod trip in early January. New this year were a Birding Nauset Marsh by Kayak and visits to two banding stations in Brewster during the fall migration. The Club also scheduled Woodcock walks in Reading, the Blue Hills, Concord, and the Great Meadows in Lexington. The Club continued co-sponsoring the TASL (Take a Second Look) surveys of waterfowl of Boston Harbor and a Spring Hawk watch at Plum Island. Expanding out from birds, Eddie Giles led two trips to Garden in the Woods to find birds and see wildflowers and Dave Small conducted a Breeding Bird and Biodiversity day in the wilds of Royalston. Teaming up with Eddie Giles, Dave also led a Birds, Butterflies and Dragonflies trip in August.

A special thank-you goes out to the 73 leaders who guided our members throughout the year. Several leaders deserve special mention. Steve Grinley led an amazing 38 trips, Bill Drummond led 18 trips, Ida Giriunas, the Energizer Bunny, led 18 trips, Bob Stymeist 12, and Eddie Giles and Linda Ferraresso each led 10 trips.

The Club visited Essex County most often, with a total of 128 trips: 71 to Newburyport and the Plum Island area, 24 to Cape Ann, 18 to other spots in the county, and 15 trips to the Marblehead Neck Sanctuary and areas nearby. Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge was a distant second with 39 trips. There were also 35 scheduled trips in the Metropolitan Boston area; 20 trips in the extended Sudbury River Valley, which include~ Oxbow NWR, Bolton Flats, and Devens RFTA; 25 trips to the South Shore and to areas on Cape Cod; and 14 trips to areas in Western Massachusetts. Out of state trips included a weekend trip to Rangely Lakes in Maine and four trips in New Hampshire.

The Massachusetts Audubon Society (MAS) Checklist (11/98) now includes all the species that have been identified in the state as determined by the Massachusetts Avian Records Committee (MARC). The Club recorded the following species that are listed on the new list as very rare or as accidental species:

Tufted Duck                Westport                     January 12

Eared Grebe                Gloucester                  November 16

Gyrfalcon                    Boston                         January 5

Mew Gull                    Newburyport              March 9

Atlantic Puffin             at sea                          September 8

Chuck-will’s-widow     Wellfleet                     May 31

Cave Swallow              Nauset-Orleans           November 15

Blue Grosbeak             Woburn                       June 5

In addition, though not in the rare or accidental category, the following species listed as rare or uncommon were seen by the Club:

Leach’s Storm-Petrel                           Cashes Ledge                          July 26

Acadian Flycatcher                              Quabbin                                  June 21

Prothonotary Warbler                        Morris Island, Chatham          August 9

Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow           Plum Island                             October 19

The following species occur with some regularity in the state but were missed by the Club during 2003: Redhead, Least Bittern, Tricolored Heron, Cattle Egret, Sora Rail, Orange-crowned Warbler, and Connecticut Warbler.

The biggest trip list this year was Bill Drummond’s trip around Essex County, recording 123 species on May 17. In Bill’s notes he states “although the numbers look high, it was actually a poor birding day with the only real highlight being a Golden-winged Warbler, a life bird for seven on the trip”. Hardly a poor day! Bill recorded 11 species of waterfowl which included several late Buffleheads, seven species of raptors, 17 different shorebirds and 20 species of warblers. Glenn d’Entremont’s trip around Norfolk County on May 10 was the next best in terms of numbers with 107 species found. The most species for the least amount of travel was a trip totally within the town of Wellfleet that recorded a total of 89 species on September 14. 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.

Date                Location                                  #Species          Leader

Jan. 19             Barnstable-Marshfield            65                    Tom Prince

Feb. 9              Scituate-Plymouth                  66                    Glenn d’Entremont

March 26         Cape Ann                                 56                    John Nelson

April 13           Boxford-Newburyport            56                    Bill Drummond

May 17            Newburyport-Boxford            123                  Bill Drummond

June 21            Quabbin to Essex                    84                    Laura de la Flor

July 7               Plum Island                             59                    Tom Young

Aug 31             Newburyport area                  67                    Bill Drummond

Sept 14            Wellfleet                                 89                    Bob Stymeist

Oct 19             Newburyport area                  67                    Bill Drummond

Nov 15             Bourne-Orleans                      76                    Bob Stymeist

Dec 14             Newburyport-Salisbury          41                    Steve Grinley

Weather-wise, the year 2003 was cold and quite sunny with much more than normal precipitation. In the Boston area the temperature averaged 50.2 degrees, 1.4 below normal. This was 2. 7 degrees colder than 2002 and made for the coldest year since 1992. A high of 93 degrees was recorded in Boston on June 27th, July 5th and 6th, and for a four-way tie on August 22nd. The low was 0 degrees on February 14th and 16th. Monthly departures from normal ranged from a minus 5.4 in January to a plus 2.0 in August. June and July were cool, making most of the summer quite comfortable. August was on the hot side, though temperatures reached 90 or better on just six days in Boston, which is half the average. Rainfall totaled 44.4 7 inches, though according to climatologist Robert Lautzenheiser, this number is probably about five inches short due to defective gauging in the official automated stations providing the data. The wettest month was October with 6.20 inches and the driest month was January with 1.81 inches. Days with measurable amounts were 139, 15 days over the normal number. Snowfall in Boston totaled 77.7 inches, 35.7 inches more than the past average and 53.2 inches more than 2002.The most in any 24-hour period was 27.6 inches, which came on President’s Day Weekend, February 17-18th. The year will long be remembered for this record-breaking storm, as well as another record-breaking early season snowfall of 16.9 inches on December 5-7th. The sunniest month was July ·at 60% sunshine the dreariest month was unfortunately May with only 35% sunshine.

The Club recorded nearly 82% of all the birds that were noted during 2003-pretty impressive! A total of at least 362 species, one more than last year, was observed and reported by birders across the state during 2003. Other noteworthy species seen during the year were: Greater White-fronted Goose, Barnacle Goose, Pacific Loon, Western Grebe, Yellow-nosed Albatross,

White-faced Storm-Petrel, Red-billed Tropicbird, both White and Brown Pelicans, Magnificent Frigatebird, Reddish Egret, White and White-faced Ibis, Wood Stork, Black Vulture, Mississippi Kite, Swainson’s Hawk, Wilson’s Plover, American Avocet, Red-necked Stint, South Polar Skua, Sabine’s Gull, Bridled Tern, Sooty Tern, Rufous Hummingbird, Hammond’s Flycatcher, Say’s Phoebe, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Townsend’s Solitaire, MacGillivray’s Warbler, Painted Bunting, Henslow’s Sparrow and Western Meadowlark.

MASSACHUSETTS LIST TOTALS IN 2003

John Hoye, Wayland                           305

Oakes Spalding, Cambridge                304

Herman D’Entremont, Somerville      302

Audrey McCarthy, Wayland               301

Chris Floyd, Lexington                         280

Bob Stymeist, Watertown                  277

Glenn d’Entremont, Stoughton          276

Fay Vale, Wakefield                            275

Linda Ferraresso, Watertown             271

Fred Bouchard, Brookline                   252

Ida Giriunas, Reading                          238

Shane Hunt, Brookline                        229

Laura de la Flor, Salem                       228

Adams Little, Cambridge                    169

Shawn Carey, Braintree                      64*

*Species photographed in Massachusetts, and not just ID photos but “real” photos of each bird.

2002 STATISTICAL AND YEAR END REPORT

by Robert H. Styrneist, Statistician

During 2002, the Brookline Bird Club listed 307 species of birds on 249 reported trips, five more than last year. A total of 279 trips were scheduled, 10 more than last year but 11 fewer than the all-time Club high of 290 during 2000. There were 79 all-day, 165 morning, 31 afternoon or evening, and four week-end trips. Thirty trips were not reported, 18 of which were cancelled due to weather, leaving just 12 unreported, a big improvement over last year when 44 trips went unreported. In Massachusetts, the Club reported a total of 301 species, one

more than last year, on 241 trips.

Two new species were added to the overall Brookline Bird Club list of birds. A Eurasian Kestrel in Chatham was recorded on an extension of a Stoughton trip on April 20 led by Glenn d’Entremont. Then on May 5, Dennis Peacock extended the co-sponsored South Shore Bird Club trip from Wompatuck State Park to Chatham to add this rare falcon to the day’s list. This was just the second state record of this vagrant, the only other record being that of a female collected on Nantasket Beach on September 29, 1887. The other new species was a Pacific Golden-Plover on Plum Island, just one day after the Eurasian Kestrel, on April 21. It was recorded on a scheduled trip to the island led by Steve Grinley and on an extension of an Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary trip led by Fay and Peter Vale. This was the first state record of this species and was just the third record in eastern North America.

In 2002, the Club scheduled only two pelagic trips, down from 13 in 2000. Pelagics can be unpredictable and the trip from Plymouth on July 27 was somewhat disappointing with just six Greater and two Sooty Shearwaters noted. The trip to Cashes Ledge was a wonderful success, not so much for the rarities, but for the great weather and the nearly constant supply of birds and marine mammals to look at. Among the highlights were a Cory’s Shearwater, 39 Leach’s Storm-Petrels and 315 Red Phalaropes.

The Club also conducted several workshops. Shawn Carey held a Photo and Video Workshop in February for birders considering getting into bird photography, and Eddie Giles conducted one on digital imaging for birders getting into digiscoping. Repeated were the Warbler Workshop in April and the Sparrow Workshop in October. The third annual Grand Slam Owl Prowl was held on February 23. The intent of this trip is. to locate, either by hearing or sight, all eight species of owls that are regularly found in Massachusetts. It was a success! For the first time, all owls were located, starting at 2 a.m. in Topsfield and ending 18 hours later on Martha’s Vineyard. New this year were a series of mid-week trips to Cape Ann in search of alcids and seabirds, led by Barbara Volkle, and a Birds and Breakfast trip on Cape Cod in early January. Expanding out from birds, Eddie Giles led two trips to Garden in the Woods to find birds and see wildflowers, and Dave Small conducted a Breeding Bird and Biodiversity day in the wilds of Royalston. Teaming up with Eddie Giles, Dave also led a Birds, Butterflies, and Dragonflies trip in August.

A special thank-you goes out to the 77 leaders who guided our members throughout the year. Several leaders deserve special mention. Steve Grinley led an amazing 33 trips and Bill Drummond led 22 trips. Soheil Zendeh was listed as a leader 16 times. Bob Stymeist led 14 trips, Laura de la Flor 12, and John Nave, Bob Petersen, and Eddie Giles each led 11 trips and Linda Ferraresso and Barbara Volkle each led 10 trips.

The Club visited Essex County most often, with a total of 116 trips: 74 to Newburyport and the Plum Island area, 25 to Cape Ann, and 17 to other spots in the county. Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge was second with 42 trips, while competing migration trap Marblehead Neck was visited 15 times, thanks to Karen Haley, Rob Kipp, Joe Paluzzi and others. There were also 44 scheduled trips in the Metropolitan Boston area, 23 trips to the South Shore and areas on Cape Cod, and 10 trips to areas in Western Massachusetts. Out of state trips included a weekend trip to Rangely Lakes in Maine, a week-end trip to Dead Creek Wildlife Management Area in Addison, Vermont, and six trips in New Hampshire.

The Massachusetts Audubon Society (MAS) Checklist (11/98) now includes all the species that have been identified in the state as determined by the Massachusetts Avian Records Committee (MARC). The Club recorded the following species that are listed on the new list as very rare or as accidental species.

Eared Grebe                                        Gloucester      January 12

Western Grebe                                   Plum Island     March 9

Greater White fronted Goose            Rochester        November 3

Barnacle Goose                                   Ipswich            November 9

Eurasian Kestrel                                  Chatham         April 20

Pacific Golden-Plover                          Plum Island     April 21

Thayer’s Gull                                       Nantucket       January 19

Rufous Hummingbird                         Agawam          September 15

Townsend’s Solitaire                           Essex               February 9

Brewer’s Blackbird                              Ipswich            November 9

In addition, though not in the rare or accidental category, the following species listed as rare or uncommon were seen by the Club.

Leach’s Storm-Petrel                           Cashes Ledge                                      September 9

American Avocet                                Squantum                                           May 11

Mew Gull                                            Nantucket                                           January 19

Royal Tern                                           South Beach                                        August 10

Red-headed Woodpecker                   Melrose                                               April 30

Acadian Flycatcher                              Quabbin                                              June 2

Prothonotary Warbler                        Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary        April 21

Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow           Plum Island                                         September 21

The following species occur with some regularity in the state but were missed by the Club during 2002: Least Bittern, Cattle Egret, Redhead, Little Gull, and Yellow-bellied Flycatcher (seen on Rangeley Trip in Maine, but not in Massachusetts).

The biggest trip list this year was Glenn d’Entremont’s trip around Norfolk County, recording 105 species on May 11. An American Avocet at Squantum was a surprise and 18 species of warblers including Orange-crowned were noted. The next best trip list was 94 species, recorded on the same day on a trip around Essex County. The trip began with bicycling down Plum Island. The morning started off cold and breezy but that did not hinder the trip from Lot #1 to the Hellcat parking lot. Then, the wind increased and biking and birding on the way back proved to be a challenge, so the trip continued by car around Newburyport and then on to Cape Ann. 21 species of warblers were tallied on that trip. The most species for the least amount of travel was a trip totally within the town of Wellfleet that recorded a total of 91 species on September 15.

Weather-wise, the year 2002 was very warm and quite sunny and had more than normal precipitation. In the Boston area the temperature averaged 52.9 degrees, 1.3 above normal. This was the tenth warmest year in 132 years of record. A high of 101 degrees was recorded in Boston on August 4, and the low was 12 degrees on December 9. Rainfall totaled 41.62 inches, though according to climatologist Robert Lautzenheiser, this number is probably about five inches short due to defective gauging in the official automated stations providing the data. The wettest month was December with 5.30 inches and the driest month was July with 1.42 inches. Days with measurable amounts were 131, seven days over the normal number. Snowfall in Boston totaled 24.5 inches, 18.3 inches less than the past average and 21.9 inches less than 2001. The most in any 24-hour period was 5.4 inches that fell on Christmas Day. The sunniest month was July at 71 % sunshine and the least sunny month was March with only 38%.

During 2002, birders across the state reported a total of 361 species, including seven new species to be added to the over- all state list. Six of these, Barnacle Goose, Pacific Golden- Plover, Broad-billed Sandpiper, Elegant Tern, Lazuli Bunting and Shiny Cowbird, have been officially added to the state list. The Massachusetts Avian Records Committee (MARC) has yet to discuss the Calliope Hummingbird discovered coming to a Cape Cod feeder in November.

The Club recorded nearly 83% of all the birds that were noted during 2002 – pretty impressive! In addition to the seven new species listed above, other impressive species seen during the year were: Pacific Loon, Western Grebe, White-faced Storm-Petrel, Magnificent Frigatebird, Tufted Duck, Black Vulture, Mississippi Kite, Gyrfalcon, Eurasian Kestrel, Yellow Rail, American Avocet, Red-necked Stint, Curlew Sandpiper, Thayer’s Gull, Bridled Tern, Rufous Hummingbird, Fork-tailed Flycatcher, Cassin’s Kingbird, Townsend’s Solitaire, Varied Thrush, Townsend’s Warbler, Harris’ Sparrow, Brewer’s Blackbird, and Boat-tailed Grackle.