The Booby Gannet (Sula fiber) in Massachusetts. — In my Cata¬ 
logue of the Birds of New England, I felt constrained to put the Booby Gan¬ 
net in the purgatory of the “not proven.” It had been mentioned by Mr. 
Putnam, but all traces of evidence to authorize its retention had been lost. 
It had also been given in Mr. Linsley’s list, but erroneously. It is not a 
species whose appearance could be looked for with any confidence, but 
then the list of Massachusetts birds abounds in the appearance of quite a 
number of such unlooked for visitors. On the 17th of September, 1878, a 
fine male specimen of the Sula fiber was shot on Cape Cod, and brought 
to the Boston market. It is now in the possession of my neighbors, 
Edward O. and Outram Bangs. — T. M. Brewer, Boston, Mass. 
BulL N.O.O. 4, July. 1879, p. /?/. 
.Pi Sj .. 
Jm 
Cu^il 
CTA -0*^t fix* 
y^yl^Z^ ( 9^/ r dty&LyC 1 
11,/* r } J 
U £y c ,< ' ‘ t- 
Sconnett Point, R.I. 
April 16-21, 1890. 
Two or three specimens seen nearly every day. They fre¬ 
quently came in within one or two hundred yards of the shore. 
All observed were adult birds. They appeared to be very shy, 
never coming anywhere near any of the boats. I frequently saw 
them plunge down into the water for fish, and sometimes my at¬ 
tention would be'> ifttracted to the bird by the white spray thrown 
up when it struck' the water. 
Distribution of New England Birds. - 
A Reply to Dr,Brewer. p A .A.Pnrcie. 
^ /2( amt s ^ ^ it. .—. U ^ 
Sula fiber. Booby Gannet. — “ Guilford,” Conn., Linsley (1. c.). 
“September. Rare.” Essex Co., F. W. Putnam. (Proc. Ess. Inst., Vol. 
I, 1856.) Both these cases are cited by Dr. Coues in his Birds of New 
England, and the last by C. J. Maynard. (Naturalist’s Guide, 1870.) 
Bull, N.O.O. 2. Jan., 1877. p. /*/. 
