Seabird regime change

Let’s face it, we all woke up this morning with the same question: what’s going on with seabirds right now? I’m glad you asked, because the answer is “a whole helluva lot.”

Another week, another lost flycatcher from some far-flung locale has turned up. This one had been flung further than most, having perhaps started its journey as far away as Argentina.

With an exceedingly rare Gray Kingbird that played hide and seek with birders in Eastham this week, the Cape reclaimed the title of rare bird capital of the region, but sadly this Caribbean visitor kept moving - it was last seen on the 19th at Nauset Light Beach.

Last week’s Vermilion Flycatcher, the briefly famous female photographed at South Cape Beach in Mashpee, turned out to be a one-day wonder, as we birders say – she hasn’t been seen since. Beyond a wayward Western Kingbird that’s still hanging around Peterson Farm in Falmouth, it was a quiet week on the Cape for fall rarities.

As we turn another calendar page, we’re also turning a corner in the fall migration. I’ve always preferred October to September, mainly because we tend to get more birds later in the fall.

You may have noticed that it rained recently, for the first time in what seemed like years. In addition to a satisfying, multi-day soaking of our parched soils, this weather also brought the kind of winds that get the attention of storm bird chasers, that hardy and quirky subset of the already quirky subset of society that is birders.

When it comes to bird photography, experienced practitioners know that sometimes it’s best to shoot first and ask questions later. What I mean is, even expert birders don’t always know exactly what they’re looking at until they get home and look at the photos.

More than 300 species of birds have been recorded from Race Point, the second-highest list of anywhere on the Cape and Islands.