RESULTS: SPECIES ACCOUNTS 

 MARINE BIRDS 



Forty-nine species of marine birds were recorded at sea in the northern 

 Chesapeake Bight during 784 h from 1971 - 1977. Seven additional species re- 

 ported by other observers between latitudes 37°N and 30°N during the same 

 period are presented at the conclusion of these accounts. Omitted are water- 

 birds characteristic of the inshore coastal and littoral zone habitats (within 

 8 km of shore) including pelicans, cormorants, brant, eiders, scoters, and all 

 other anseriformes. 



The following accounts follow the format of Stewart and Robbins (1958), 

 Three categories for status are: 



Transient . --Those species that are probably migratory and spend little 

 or no time resting or feeding in the northern Chesapeake Bight dur- 

 ing the seasons designated in the accounts. 



Visitant . --Those species that spend time feeding or resting in the 

 northern Chesapeake Bight. 



Vagrant . --Those species that are probably outside of their usual range. 



Terms describing relative abundance conform to Stewart and Robbins (1958) 

 as follows: 



Abundant , Common , Fairly Common, Un common , Rare. Species found in decreas- 

 ing order of abundance, taking into account habits and conspicuous- 

 ness. 



Casual . --A species occurring slightly beyond its usual range for the sea- 

 son indicated and seldom recorded. 



Accidental .--A species recorded well beyond its usual range and herein 

 recorded only once. 



Hypothetical . --Published but questionable sight record; no photographic 

 or specimen documentation exists from the west-central North Atlan- 

 tic and herein recorded only once. 



Due to infrequent trips and the irregular distribution of species, these 

 designations may be modified with the accumulation of more data. Relative 

 abundance modified by "probably" means that information is lacking from the 

 northern Chesapeake Bight, but observations recorded in adjacent waters to the 

 north off New Jersey, and south off southeastern Virginia and North Carolina 

 support the designation. 



In the following accounts for each species, the information following 

 "maximum counts" is given in the sequence: number seen, hours of observations, 

 location (either place name or average distance from shore), and date. 



