Recent bird sightings on Cape Cod (as of Aug. 5) as reported to the Massachusetts Audubon Society.
The big news this week is the increase in shorebird variety. South Beach has played host to many shorebird and tern species this week. A four-hour tour of South Beach sponsored by the Mass Audubon Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary on Aug. 4 was immediately greeted by two black skimmers. Participants were treated to excellent views of the skimmers as they skimmed back and forth over the “lagoon.’’ To add to the excitement, a black-crowned night-heron was also feeding in the lagoon. The group checked this spot again before leaving and had excellent side-by-side comparisons of Hudsonian godwit and marbled godwit. Other side-by-side comparisons included “eastern‘’ and “western’’ willets, least sandpiper and semipalmated sandpiper, and common tern and roseate tern (in flight and standing on the ground).
The full list of species seen on South Beach this week includes: Canada goose, American black duck, mallard, common eider, surf scoter, white-winged scoter, black scoter, double-crested cormorant, great blue heron, great egret, snowy egret, black-crowned night-heron, osprey, Northern harrier, black-bellied plover, semipalmated plover, piping plover, killdeer, American oystercatcher, spotted sandpiper, greater yellowlegs, “eastern’’ and “western’’ willet, lesser yellowlegs, whimbrel, Hudsonian godwit, marbled godwit, ruddy turnstone, red knot, sanderling, semipalmated sandpiper, Western sandpiper, least sandpiper, white-rumped sandpiper, dunlin, short-billed dowitcher, laughing gull, ring-billed gull, herring gull, least tern, black tern, roseate tern, common tern, Forster’s tern, black skimmer, Eastern phoebe, American crow, horned lark, tree swallow, Northern rough-winged swallow, bank swallow, barn swallow, European starling, cedar waxwing, Savannah sparrow, saltmarsh sharp-tailed sparrow, song sparrow, red-winged blackbird, common grackle, brown-headed cowbird, and American goldfinch.
Birds seen on Stellwagen Bank this week are: Cory’s shearwater, greater shearwater, sooty shearwater, manx shearwater, Wilson’s storm-petrel, and red-necked phalarope.
For more information about bird sightings or to report bird sightings, call the Massachusetts Audubon Society at 781-259-8805 or go to www.massaudubon.org. 
