The possibly unprecedented sighting of a flamingo in Massachusetts had the bird world aflutter this week, but don't expect to see it again here soon.
It seems the bird has flown the Cape.
STAY IN THE KNOW
 |
Watch NBC10 Boston news for free, 24/7, wherever you are. |
 |
Get Boston local news, weather forecasts, lifestyle and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Boston’s newsletters. |
The flamingo was spotted by at least two people on Cape Cod, including in Dennis, but there haven't been any more sightings locally, according to Mark Faherty, science coordinator for Mass Audubon Cape Cod.
"It seems to be back in Long Island," he told NBC10 Boston Friday.
There have been recent sightings on Long Island, about a week after a flamingo was spotted there, Faherty said, but this time about 60 miles closer to New York City. A flamingo was sighted Wednesday by people near Cedar Beach Marina, according to Cornell University's eBird app, where birders log the animals they see.
That means the flamingo -- if it is the same one -- is continuing to enjoy popular vacation spots. Its first New York sighting was first seen in Easthampton, part of New York's tony Hamptons community, and the new location is close to New York's Fire Island.
Images of the bird at a Cape Cod beach were circulating on social media over the weekend, and were shared with NBC10 Boston Tuesday. The bird can be seen wading in the water off shore.
Faherty noted that he measured the distance from Easthampton to Dennis at 114 miles, "which is nothing for a big bird."
If the flamingo is found to be wild, it would be the first American flamingo ever confirmed to have visited the Bay State on its own, Faherty has said.
American flamingos typically stick to Florida and points south, and sightings outside of Florida are usually linked with escapes from captivity or hurricanes — a hurricane this September dispersed some, and the birds were spotted in strange new places, like Wisconsin and Ohio, according to Faherty.
"The thinking is it's just some bird that was displaced by the hurricane back then that doesn't know where it lives anymore," he told NBC10 Boston earlier this week.
More on flamingos' recent travels
It's up to the Massachusetts Avian Records Committee to make the final determination on whether the bird is wild, Faherty said, noting that he's served on the committee before.
American flamingos have been spotted in Massachusetts a few times before, according to Faherty and the committee's database.
Get updates on what's happening in Boston to your inbox. Sign up for our News Headlines newsletter.
A flamingo was spotted at Plum Island in September 1964, followed by another in Natick the next year. But the committee disagreed on whether the first was wild and found that the latter had escaped from a private collection and ultimately didn't vote to accept either on its list of rare birds that have visited the state.
