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Historic Status

The debate was wide open as to whether or not the Northern Waterthrush, or “Water Wagtail” as it was called at that time, bred in Massachusetts during the 1800s. More than one ornithologist claimed that it did without having certifiable evidence, but there were skeptics prepared to challenge such a claim (Howe & Allen 1901). In 1929, Edward Howe Forbush wrote, “In summer pairs are scattered sparingly over the northern and western parts of the state, but because of their scarcity at this season, their shyness and the care with which they conceal their nests, records of actual breeding within our limits are rather rare,” (Forbush 1929).

Atlas 1 Distribution

During Atlas 1 Northern Waterthrushes were present in small numbers in every region except the Boston Basin, but their thin distribution posted only 14% occupied blocks statewide. The western regions, particularly the Marble Valleys, accounted for the lion’s share of the bird’s breeding distribution in Massachusetts, and the regions west of the Connecticut River Valley hosted 47% of the species’ range. Wooded swamps and bogs certainly played host to waterthrushes in the Berkshire Transition and Vermont Piedmont, but the more agrarian character of the Connecticut River Valley precluded much breeding activity in that region. The Worcester Plateau, another hot spot, had 19 blocks with breeding evidence, though breeding activity in the more eastern regions was highly local. The Bristol/Narragansett Lowlands had several pockets of breeding Northern Waterthrushes, presumably in areas of White Cedar swamps, but on Cape Cod the species was virtually absent except as a Possible breeder at the very base of the region.

Atlas 2 Distribution and Change

Seemingly in many places where slow or standing water was available in a mature woodland setting with heavy undergrowth, the Northern Waterthrush showed signs of expanding to make use of it during Atlas 2, and its statewide footprint grew to 34%. Aside from its puzzling disappearance from a dozen blocks in the Marble Valleys, and a decline in the Taconics, this species was generally stable or increasing in the western highlands. The Worcester Plateau regions both had the Northern Waterthrush expand into 19 new blocks, and the colonization of 80 blocks in the Coastal Plains represented a major eastward push for the species. The heart of the Bristol/Narragansett Lowlands also saw marked expansion, though Cape Cod and the Islands remained mostly devoid of this species.

Atlas 1 Map

Atlas 2 Map

Atlas Change Map