Black-backed Woodpecker: Sometime around April 15 Lori Snell was walking her dog on the Lost Farm Wildlife Sanctuary on Nantucket  when she noticed an unusual woodpecker ripping off large chunks of bark from the dead pines. When she looked it up in her bird book, she thought it looked like a Black-backed Woodpecker. On April 25 Lori took Edie Ray and Steve Langer to the location, and they confirmed her identification. On April 26, Jeremiah Trimble got photographs.

Townsend's Warbler: David Romps discovered a Townsend's Warbler at Chestnut Hill Reservoir on April 17 and posted photos to prove it! The bird had been there for two or three days, but other birders only got glimpses, and were not able to identify it. On April 18 Erik Neilsen got some more photos (1, 2, 3, 4, 5).

Ross's Geese: Up until March 15, 2009 there had only been three records of Ross's Goose in Massachusetts. So, what is going on? Let's try to keep track.
Ipswich: March 15, seven discovered by Rick Heil, which he phonescoped. Phil Brown arrived shortly thereafter and also got some photos. Rick believes this may be the largest flock recorded in New England. Bob Stymeist got some photos on March 16. On March 17, Jeremiah Trimble got some photos.
Easthampton:On March 16 Bob and Lura Bieda were at Arcadia meadows and spotted a flock of geese including some white geese, and when they investigated they discovered eight Ross's Geese. The New England record only lasted one day! On March 17 Jaap van Heerden got some photos. Anita Mueller got this portrait on March 18.
Haverhill:On March 19 Steve Mirick discovered two more Ross's Geese in Haverhill. The following day he found them across the river in West Newbury and added pictures to his page. Jim Fenton and Jeremiah Trimble got some photos of them on March 21.
Plum Island: At 6:30 AM on March 22 Tom Wetmore saw seven Ross's Geese at Stage Island Pool, but shortly thereafter they flew in the direction of Ipswich and Tom believes they were the Ipswich birds. But then later in the day Nancy Landry discovered a single immature Ross's Goose at Cross Farm Hill, and Jeremiah Trimble photographed it later in the day.

Eurasian Teal: Ann and Gary Gurka discovered a "Eurasian" Green-winged Teal on March 15 at Cold Spring Park in Newton. Bob Stymeist was able to get there the same day at 6PM and got some photos. Jeremiah Trimble captured some photos on March 16, and on St. Patrick's Day John Crookes got a photo. On March 19 Taylor Yeager got some shots.

Tufted Duck: On March 12 John Hines discovered a male Tufted Duck on the Sudbury River in Wayland, and subsequent searchers rediscovered it in Concord and Sudbury. Jason Forbes got some photos late on March 12, and Jeremiah Trimble got some on March 13.

Thayer's Gull: Perhaps the gull extravaganza has moved to Turners Falls. On February 23 James P. Smith discovered a Thayer's Gull, and possible a second one, although he comments he is not sure.

Slaty-backed Gull: On February 20 James P. Smith was watching gulls at an evening roost in Turners Falls, when he spotted a 2nd/3rd cycle Slaty-backed Gull. The first record of this species occured in Massachusetts only just over a year ago! More photos from February 23. Photos from Tom Pirro on February 27.

Thayer's Gull: In the gull extravaganza at Eastern Point in Gloucester as many as three Thayer's Gulls were discovered early in January by Rick Heil. At least one is still being seen later in the month. More photos from Rick Heil. Jeremiah Trimble. Jim Barber. On February 16, Jeremiah Trimble spotted one and photographed it.

Ivory Gull #2!: What??? On January 20 Barry Burden discovered a second (!) adult Ivory Gull in Plymouth Harbor boat ramp parking lot behind East Bay Grille. And the Gloucester bird was still being reported! Photos from Mark Faherty. Ian Davies. Rich Bowes. On January 21 by Mike LaBossiere. Paul Kinnaly. Chris Walz. Chris Sheriden. Tom Murray. David Jones.  Erik Neilsen (1, 2, 3, 4). Philip Keyes. Eduardo del Solar (1, 2, 3, 4). Gene Harriman. Blair Nikula. Will Sweet photos and video. Phil Brown. Taylor Yeager. Jeffrey Davis. Jim Fenton. Shawn Carey. Linda Thompson.

Ivory Gull: On January 17 Jeremiah Trimble discovered an adult bird on the jetty at Eastern Point in Gloucester. Many birders quickly converged and enjoyed (and photographed) it. Jeremiah's photos can be seen here. More photos from Phil Brown. Phonescoped photos by Rick Heil. Also William Freedberg.  Tom Pirro. Tom Murray. Andrew Birch. Ian Davies. Len Medlock. On January 18 video from Matt Garvey. Two videos from Mary Keleher (1, 2). Photos from Steve Mirick, Erik Neilsen (1, 2, 3, 4, 5), and Pennsylvanian Jeff Davis. Still there on January 19. Photos from Luke Seitz. Dan Berard. Dennis Skillman. Lloyd. Lanny McDowell. 

Oregon Junco: In Yarmouth on January 17 Anne Middleton photographed an "Oregon" Dark-eyed Junco at her feeder.

Pink-footed Goose: On January 12 Greg Hirth spotted a small goose at Salt Pond in Falmouth, but it was snowing hard so visibility was poor. His field guide didn't include Pink-footed Goose, but he made a few phone calls and determined the pink bill tip was critical, so he examined it with his scope and confirmed this. On January 13 no one could rediscover this bird, but on January 14 a number of birders were able to see it, and Greg and Barry Burden were able to get photos. Rick Bowes also went on January 14 and got some photos. Jeremiah Trimble found it on January 15 at Sider's Pond along with some Cackling Geese and took these photos.

Eared Grebe: An Eared Grebe was discovered on the Buzzard's Bay Christmas Bird Count at Quisset Harbor in Falmouth, but was not seen again until January 9, when Peter Trimble got some excellent images.

Yellow-headed Blackbird: Phil Brown made a nice discovery on January 5, when he found this bird consorting with House Sparrows at the end of Dock Lane in Saliisbury. Still there on January 12, it was captured by Tom Murray. Dennis Skillman.

Barnacle Goose: On December 3 Tom French discovered a Barnacle Goose in Charleton. It was still there on December 13 when Sheila Carroll captured these images.

Mountain Bluebird: On November 23 Brian Parker discovered a female Mountain Bluebird at Fork Hill in Eastham, and Mark Faherty was able to capture some photos on the 24th. Peter Bono captured more photos on November 26. Jeff Davis traveled from Pennsylvania to take images.. The bluebird was still there on December 7 when Taylor Yeager captured his photos.

Franklin's Gull: On November 15 Rick Heil discovered a Franklin's Gull on Plum Island, and phone-scoped some photos for the record. 

Cave Swallow:  Is it possible that the first state record of this species occured only in 2003? It has been seen annually since then, and 2008 is shaping up to be a banner year for this species in Massachusetts. On November 11, Rick Heil and Peter Vale captured photos at Sandy Point on Plum Island. On November 19, Mike LaBossiere captured these photos of a Cave Swallow warming itself on a stone farm building.

Black-tailed Gull:  There were at least nine species among the 1500 gulls at Herring Cove in Provincetown when Blair Nikula picked out a Black-tailed Gull on November 1. If accepted by the MARC it will be only the second or third state record! See Blair's photos and Peter Bono's photos. On November 3, Rick Heil got a number of good shots.

Varied Thrush:  On October 26 Rick Heil discovered a Varied Thrush at Eastern Point in Gloucester. Check out  Rick's photos.

Say's Phoebe:  On October 2, John Nelson discovered a Say's Phoebe on Plum Island. Usually these birds don't stick around but lucky birders were able to see it the next day, including Nancy Landry and Rick Heil who were able to get photographs.

Say's Phoebe:  Paul Champlin reported a Say's Phoebe on September 11 at Race Point in Provincetown, and Mark Faherty went there later in the day and was able to capture some photographs (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

Rufous Hummingbird:  On September 9, Anne Middleton spotted an adult male Rufous Hummingbird at her feeder in Yarmouth. It only stayed two days, but she captured definitive photos.

Broad-billed Hummingbird:  When Ron and Marge Murphy saw a strange hummingbird at their feeder they consulted their friends, Sandra and Charles McGibbon, who photographed the bird on August 23 and identified it as a Broad-billed. They were also able to capture a video which is available in a 10-second version in good resolution here (3 megs it will take a bit) and in a 19-second version on YouTube (compressed). Sandra and Charles contacted master bander Sue Finnegan on August 24 who captured, banded, confirmed the identification with measurements. On August 25 Peter Trimble was able to photograph the bird as well. It was still there on September 14 for photos from Mark Szantyr. Jeff and Amy Davis traveled from Pennsylvania on September 15 and captured both photos and video.

Calliope Hummingbird:  A hummingbird coming to a Deerfield feeder on August was identified by Rob Ranney-Blake as a Calliope hummingbird, only the fifth state record of this species that was only first discovered in Massachusetts in 2002.The previous four records were found after the first of November. Rob captured these stricking photos of this adult male. 

Black-bellied Whistling Ducks:  On June 6 employees at New England Biolabs noted some strange-looking ducks in the pond out back. They pored through a bird guide and decided they were Black-bellied Whistling Ducks. One of them emailed birder Jim Style (who works there) who wandered outside - "with great skepticism" - and was amazed to find out they were! Where did they come from?! Well, at least recently from Nova Scotia. If it weren't enough that there were nine birds in Nova Scotia, or that they disappeared only a few days before they were found in Massachusetts, but one had an abnormal growth over the bill - and so did one of the Massachusetts birds. Check out photos from Rick Heil and Phil Brown.

Black-necked Stilt:  Vern Laux discovered this handsome vagrant in the Cisco area of Nantucket on June 1.

Gull-billed Terns: How lucky can you get? Tom Wetmore tells the story: "Doug Brink, who is President of the Friends of the Parker River NWR, was taking photos of birds on the refuge on Sunday June 1st. When he took the photos in question he assumed the birds were Roseate Terns. Later on Sunday night he was looking over his photos and noticed the  black legs on these birds. Checking his field guide he decided that the birds might be Gull-billed Terns."

Mississippi Kite:  If Mississippi Kite is to be seen in Massachusetts, then Pilgrim Heights in North Truro is the place and late spring is the time. Seeing is one thing, but photographing is another, but Blair Nikula captured some wonderful images of this sub-adult bird on May 29.

Purple Gallinule:  Acting on a tip from Joe Jims, Lanny McDowell saw this handsome adult Purple Gallinule in Oak Bluffs on May 5.

Ruff:  On May 3 Paul Peterson discovered a male Ruff in Rowley. The next day the male was seen, but a second bird was discovered in the same area by Herman D'Entremont and Oakes Spalding. Photos from Ian Davies and Phil Brown.

Pacific Loon:  On May 3 Blair Nikula discovered a breeding plumaged Pacific Loon at Herring Cove in Provincetown, and captured photos of this handsome bird. Has this species ever been photographed before in this plumage in Massachusetts?

Prothonotary Warbler:  On April 24 Dana and Inga Jewell discovered a Prothonotary Warbler at Ell Pond in Melrose. It lingered for several days allowing many birders to enjoy it. See photos from Christopher Ciccone and Paul Ippolito.

Fork-tailed Flycatcher:  On April 13, Doug Kierdorf spotted what he thought might be a Fork-tailed Flycatcher at Chandler Pond in Brighton, and on April 14 got his friend Jean Dunlavy to check it out. It was! Check out photos by Bob Stymeist and Jeremiah Trimble, Marshall Iliff, Paul Kinnally. and  On April 15, see photos by Anne Haggerty, Dan Berard, Marj. Rines, Linda Thompson, Jason Forbes,and video from Matt Garvey.