5/15/11 Corn Hill Road, Truro. Photo by Jeremiah Trimble.
1 records
| MARC number | Decision | Species | # | Location | County | Arrival | Departure | Observers | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-004 | A | Cassin's Sparrow | 1 | Corn Hill, Truro | Barnstable | 5/15/2011 | 5/19/2011 | Al Curtis (ph), Jason Forbes (ph, voice recording), Blair Nikula (ph), Jeremiah Trimble (ph), John Young* | 16 |
A male found by John Young made himself at home among the sand and pines at Corn Hill Rd., Truro, Barnstable, May 15-19, 2011, and was even seen popping up on a beach chair; the bird allowed for stunning photos, and Jason Forbes was able to get diagnostic audio recordings (ph. A. Curtis, ph. au. J. Forbes, ph. B. Nikula, ph. J. Trimble, †J. Young*; 2011-04).
This was Massachusetts’s first record of this southwestern grassland specialist, which is typically a short-distance migrant. Spring and summer 2011 was quite the exception, as Cassin’s Sparrow showed up in North Carolina (two; state first), Illinois, Louisiana, and Arkansas (state first). Significantly, they were also found in greatly elevated numbers at the eastern edge of the species’ range, indicative of a significant disturbance on their traditional breeding grounds. Indeed, the southwest suffered a severe drought November 2010 through May 2012 (North American Drought Monitor 2012), which seemed responsible for the movement of Cassin’s Sparrow and other species such as Ash-throated Flycatchers and Dicksissels (Spiza americana)(Iliff et al. 2011).