8 Massachusetts Audubon Society 



May 7. The wood thrush is reported from Woods Hole on April 20 and 

 elsewhere in Massachusetts from May 6 to May 12. 



The kingbird and the catbird are noted from May 6 to May 10. The 

 first whippoorwill was reported from Long Island on April 25, and Gro- 

 ton, Mass., on April 26; after that there are none reported until May 3. 

 It was common in Connecticut on the 4th and 5th, had reached Block Island 

 on May 7, and was well distributed in Massachusetts on May 9. A single 

 nighthawk was reported from northern Worcester County on April 25, but 

 the species had not been heard from elsewhere except on Block Island, 

 where it arrived May 10. The rose-breasted grosbeak arrived from the 7th 

 to the 11th, and the bobolink from the 1st to the 12th. Hummingbirds were 

 noted on the 8th, 10th and 12th. Only one migration of hawks has been re- 

 ported. Hawks fly so high that few people note their migrations. 



Shore birds have been generally scarce, but since April 15th yellow- 

 legs have been locally common. The white-rumped sandpiper was noted 

 on Block Island April 30 and on Martha's Vineyard May 6. A sanderling 

 was seen at the latter place May 5, the ruddy turnstone May 6, the semi- 

 palmated and the least sandpiper May 8. The spotted sandpiper has been 

 reported generally from May 2 to 12. The solitary sandpiper was noted at 

 Hartford, Conn., on May 8, and at Rockport, Mass., May 11. 



The upland plover was reported from Connecticut on April 28 and 

 from Worcester County, Massachusetts, May 2; a Hudsonian curlew at 

 Martha's Vineyard May 7; a sora rail in Connecticut May 1, and a Virginia 

 rail April 19 in Massachusetts. Bitterns were reported from Block Island 

 April 23, from Worcester County, Massachusetts, April 26, and elsewhere 

 in Massachusetts from May 3 to May 10. In the last Bulletin, dated April 

 15, it was stated that great blue herons should be in Massachusetts at that 

 time. A few were actually reported on that date, but one was seen in 

 Worcester County April 7 and on April 22 the species had reached Bangor, 

 Me. Green herons were reported in Massachusetts from May 4 to 8. 



Migrations of the wild fowl go on about as usual. By May 1 most 

 of the migrant black ducks had disappeared. Native black ducks are breed- 

 ing. Many scoters, oldsquaws, mergansers, geese and brant have been 

 noted. April 27 there was a flight by night of brant at Barnstable; April 

 25, a large flight at Block Island. One whistling swan was reported flying 

 over Fresh Pond, Cambridge, on March 31. Five were reported not far 

 away in Arlington, Mass., the first week in April. Evidently these birds 

 were swans, but the identification was not positive. Northern gulls remained 

 quite late. There were more black-backed gulls seen at Woods Hole on 

 April 16 than had been seen there all winter. On April 27 glaucous gulls 

 were seen in the same harbor, and on April 30 an Iceland gull was reported 

 from Block Island. Laughing gulls arrived April 15 on Martha's Vineyard, 

 and on the 16th at Woods Hole. They appeared at Block Island April 30. 

 Common terns were reported from Martha's Vineyard on May 4, and the 

 least tern on the 6th. A black tern in full plumage was seen on the Con- 

 necticut River near South Windsor, Conn., on May 6, and for several suc- 

 ceeding days. Loons are migrating up the coast in numbers. The migra- 

 tion of the gannets is late. They were recorded about Martha's Vineyard 

 on May 4, and they were still at Block Island on May 9. The migration is 

 now at its height and not all the movements can be recorded here. Now 

 is the time to be afield. E. H. Forbush, 



May 15, 1918. State Ornithologist. 



