A rare tropical seabird has spent weeks charming its way around Scituate Harbor, perching on cars, deck railings, and even the heads of beachgoers and their dogs. Bridled Terns almost never show up in Massachusetts outside of hurricanes, let alone linger all summer acting like a friendly parrot. This week we dig into the sighting history, compare it to a more standoffish bird that's been working the coast of Maine and New Hampshire since 2024, and consider a few Cape reports from earlier this summer that may be connected. Plus a theory involving a marooned sailor and a rottweiler named Flotsam.

A Crested Caracara, a tropical bird of prey rarely seen north of Florida and Texas, turned up at Race Point in Provincetown this week, one of several surprising sightings across the Northeast this summer. A look at the species' odd habits, its wandering history in Massachusetts, and a running debate about whether it really belongs with the falcons.

It's all about water. One refilled bird bath brought a flood of orioles, a Wellfleet Bay stream draws in warblers and bluebirds, and a volunteer's photos of daytime owls bathing have to be seen to be believed.

As Whip-poor-wills grow scarce in the region's pine woods, a larger and considerably ruder cousin has taken up residence: the Chuck-will's-widow. Once found no farther north than Virginia, this bird-eating nightjar is now breeding across the Cape and Islands in ever-increasing numbers.

Despite its reputation as a quiet month for birding, June delivers a string of surprises on the Cape and Islands this week, led by multiple rare Gull-billed Tern sightings along the coast. From an unexpected Red Crossbill heard from a driveway to a Mississippi Kite studied from a standstill on the Sagamore Bridge, the birds are overachieving.

A short stop at a Mass Audubon nature playground becomes an insect safari full of parasites, predators, mimics, and a tiny fly with a very big name.

Wildlife photographer Diane Palomba noticed something strange at Long Pasture: hummingbirds nesting suspiciously close to a Cooper's Hawk. Turns out they knew exactly what they were doing.

A spring storm delivers rare seabirds, massive flocks of songbirds, and the Cape’s first confirmed Prothonotary Warbler nest.

Mark Faherty recaps an exciting week of spring migration on Cape Cod, featuring rare ibis sightings, a surprise Chestnut-collared Longspur, and the unofficial arrival of “Ibisfest.”