Nature Notes | Mass Audubon – Your Great Outdoors

It was another interesting month in Massachusetts birding. Let’s take a look at a few of the most exciting bird sightings as suggested by our experts.

“Brewster’s warbler” (Vermivora pinus x chrysoptera)

This beautiful animal is the fertile hybrid of two closely-related birds, the blue-winged warbler (Vermivora pinus) and the golden-winged warbler (Vermivora chrysoptera). The offspring of these species generally fall within two categories: the predominately yellow and rarer “Lawrence’s warbler” and the white and blue-grey “Brewster’s warbler.” In April we reported the sighting of a Lawrence’s warbler, and this past month a Brewster’s was seen at Westboro Wildlife Management Area.

Blue-winged warbler (left), golden-winged warbler (right) by John Sill

“Brewster’s warbler” in Westboro © Steve Arena

Black skimmer (Rynchops niger)

The black skimmer has an amazingly mismatched bill: the lower half is much longer than the upper half. When looking for food, it skims the surface with its lower bill in the water, snapping up any suitable prey it touches. Also remarkable: black skimmers have a slit-like pupils similar to those of a cat. This is primarily a southern species, typically breeding south of Massachusetts, though one or two pairs often nest as far north as Massachusetts. Two were spotted at Duxbury beach last month.

Black skimmer in Florida CC BY-ND 2.0 Florida Fish and Wildlife

Gull-billed tern (Gelochelidon nilotica)

This unique tern has a thicker beak than most other tern species, giving it a somewhat gull-like appearance. Its diet is less specialized than most of its relatives; it will happily eat fish, crustaceans, insects, lizards, and more. Its broad range includes parts of Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, and Australia, as well as portions of coastal North America. One was observed last month on Plum Island. That’s slightly north of its regular range.

Gull-billed tern at Plum Island © Dave Williams

Yellow-crowned night-heron (Nyctanassa violacea)

Night-herons are stout, relatively short-necked birds that often hunt at night, capturing a broad range of prey. They have startling red eyes. The black-crowned night-heron is more commonly spotted in our area than the yellow-crowned night-heron, and the latter typically spends the summer in the southeastern United States. Several were seen in the eastern part of the state.

Yellow-crowned night heron in Ipswich © Nathan Dubrow

Stilt sandpiper (Calidris himantopus)

This rather long-necked sandpiper has a bill that is slightly downturned at the tip, and it feeds by probing in mud, using a similar feeding style to that of a snipe a dowitcher. It breeds on the Arctic tundra and winters in the Caribbean and South America, generally appearing in Massachusetts in small numbers only during its fall migration. That’s why a sighting on June 16 on Plum Island was a nice surprise for this date.

Killdeer (top), Wilson's phalarope (left), lesser yellowlegs (center), and stilt sandpiper (right) © Dave Williams

Clockwise from top: killdeer, stilt sandpiper, lesser yellowlegs, and Wilson’s phalarope at Plum Island © Dave Williams

Some animals have names with obvious meanings. For example, the white-tailed deer is named for its bright, flashing tail, and the northern red bellied snake has a ruby-red belly. But other names have more mysterious origins, and their meanings have become lost with the passage of time. Here are a few examples.

Ovenbird

Ovenbird © Dave Larson / Mass Audubon

This olive-brown warbler with a striped crown is common across much of Massachusetts. Early North American settlers first thought it was a wagtail, and then a thrush. In 1886, the American Ornithological Union officially changed its common name to ovenbird after the shape of its nest.

Ovenbird nest CC BY-NC 2.0 Kent McFarland

The female ovenbird weaves leaves, grasses, and other material to form a mounded structure on the forest floor. She lays her eggs in a round cavity inside, and enters and exits through a hole in the side. This nest looks like an oven—not the appliance that people have in their houses today, but an old-fashioned domed outdoor bread oven with an opening in the side. Though few of these ovens are in use nowadays, the ovenbird’s name persists.

Eastern Garter Snake

Eastern garter snake © Rosemary Mosco / Mass Audubon

Medieval style garters CC BY-NC 2.0 Vrangtante Brun

People often mistakenly call this common species a “garden snake” because it is found in yards and gardens. In fact, it was most likely named for its resemblance to garters—slender undergarments that both men and women wore for centuries.

These bands of fabric wrapped around the legs, either below or above the knee, and attached to stockings to keep them from falling down. Like the garter snake, garters were often striped. Garters fell out of fashion over time—partly because fabric makers developed elastic socks that stayed up on their own.

Northern Saw-whet Owl

The smallest owl in the state, the saw-whet inhabits deep forests. Odds are you haven’t seen one, since it’s quiet and rarely seen. Where does its unusual name come from? You may be familiar with the word “whet”. It means “stimulate” or “sharpen,” as in “The smell of baking bread really whets my appetite!”

People have long used an object called a whetstone to sharpen saws, knives, and scissors. Someone decided that that this owl’s call was like the sound of a saw being sharpened on a whetstone—and the name stuck.

Baltimore Checkerspot

Coat of Arms of the Barons Baltimore CC BY-SA 4.0 Glasshouse

This butterfly bears the name “Baltimore” because its color pattern resembles the heraldic crest of the Baltimore family. In 1625, King James I of England dubbed George Calvert the First Baron of the Irish town of Baltimore. Calvert was very interested in exploring the New World, and he and his heirs helped create the colony of Maryland. In fact, that’s where the city of Baltimore got its name.

The Baltimore family’s banner has a black and gold checker spot pattern, similar to the butterfly’s black and orange markings. Both this insect and the sweet-singing Baltimore oriole are named for their resemblance to the crest.

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Last Month in Birding: June 2015