Seventh Annual Report of the Massachusetts Avian Records Committee

Changes in technology over the past few years have changed the way that the MARC deals with submitted reports.More and more birders are carrying digital or video cameras, and photographs of rarities are published on the World Wide Web within hours of the initial sighting.Less than a decade ago photographs would have had to be circulated to the nine members, while today an inexpensive CD (compact disc), including all photographs and even field sketches, can be sent to each member.In addition, the internet has provided instant access to expert ornithologists from all over the world through the ID-Frontiers listserve.In the past, a troublesome identification would often involve months, or even years, of correspondence with these experts.This technology has been a tremendous asset to the MARC in supplementing written reports, but in a few instances at a cost to the written record.Several of the records listed below were accepted based solely on photographic evidence, including the first state record of Lazuli Bunting.Written documentation is part of our ornithological history, but digital photographs are part of a technology that is changing daily.All photos are archived on CD, but the concern remains that the graphic format or the CD itself may become obsolete.The committee is grateful to the many reporters who spent hours preparing written reports and hopes that other observers will follow their example.This year marked the addition of 6 new species to the MARC's official state list, bringing the total to 476 species.This total includes three composite taxa: Large swift species (Apus/Cypsiloides species), Sulphur-bellied/Streaked Flycatcher, and Boattailed/Great-tailed Grackle.Barnacle Goose had been on the MARC's supplemental list which states that "captive origin cannot be discounted."A historical pattern of occurrence in the northeast plus a rash of sightings along the Atlantic coast in the winter of 2001-2002 convinced the Committee that this was a wild individual.A Pacific Golden-Plover was discovered on Plum Island, lingering two weeks to allow many birders to enjoy it, but a Broad-billed Sandpiper, also on Plum Island, was not as cooperative and could not be relocated after the initial sighting.A large tern at South Beach in Chatham initially defied identification but was ultimately identified as Elegant Tern.The islands south of Cape Cod can often produce good birds, but a Lazuli Bunting on Nantucket and a Shiny Cowbird on Martha's Vineyard were extraordinary. Accepted ReportsPacific Loon (Gavia pacifica), #02-03, January 26, 2002, Rockport (Essex), M. Lynch.This species now appears along the Massachusetts coast with greater frequency, with an average of four individuals reported annually between October and June (since 1997).White-faced Storm-Petrel (Pelagodroma marina), #02-28, September 7-8, 2002, Atlantis Canyon, R. Donovan, B. Zuzevich.This species is rarely reported, but it probably occurs regularly over the warm water canyons beyond the range of whale watch boats typically used by birders seeking pelagic species.The observers were on an offshore fishing boat to the Atlantis Canyon, and they were lucky enough to spot this species for the second year in a row.Magnificent Frigatebird (Fregata magnificens), #02-27, adult female September 1-4, 2002, outer Cape Cod (Barnstable), M. + T. Gooley, B. Nikula et al.This southern pelagic wanderer makes occasional peregrinations up the Atlantic coast but rarely lingers in one location for four days.Photographs and description eliminated Lesser Frigatebird (F.ariel), which has been documented in Maine.Barnacle Goose (Branta leucopsis) #02-01, Wakefield (Middlesex) and Lynnfield (Essex), February 17-19, 2002, F. + P. Vale, M. Rines et al.A single adult associating with a flock of Canada Geese was unbanded and exhibited the skittish behavior of a wild bird.A photograph left no question of its identity, only its origin.Barnacle Goose has occurred in Massachusetts on several occasions, but it is often kept in captivity, and until now the Committee has included it on its Supplemental List, which states "captive origin cannot be discounted."In the winter of 2001-2002 there was a small invasion of Barnacle Geese along the North American east coast from Virginia to New Brunswick, with a total of eight to twelve individuals being reported (see North American Birds, Vol.56, No. 2: p. 142).Historical sightings in North America are clustered in the northeast from October through April, the time when these geese could be expected to appear here as true vagrants from Greenland.The Committee agreed that the evidence was compelling that this was a wild individual and accepted it for the official state list.

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