For its 27th report, the MARC evaluated 125 records involving 43 species. The committee accepted 124 and did not accept one. This report covers records from 1995 through early 2024. Two species are added to the state list based on new records: American Flamingo and Western Wood-Pewee. Taxonomic changes result in the addition of Scopoli’s Shearwater and the loss of Hoary Redpoll; after these changes, the state list totals 519 species.
November 5, 2022, Peterson Farm, Barnstable County. Photograph by Mike Tucker.
June 29, 2024 Burrage Pond WMA, Hanson. Photograph by Jeremiah Trimble.
April 21, 2024, Kamon Farm (ECGA), Essex County. Photograph by Harris Stein.
Additional highlights include the state’s third accepted—and first photographed—Anhinga, the third accepted Garganey record, the fourth and fifth Cassin’s Kingbird, the eighth and ninth Hammond’s Flycatcher, and a notable influx of Western Tanagers and Ash-throated Flycatchers during the fall of 2023. Additional context is provided for these and other selected species below.
American Flamingo photograph by Peter Trimble.