This Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2017, photo provided by Wild Care, Inc., shows a masked booby, a tropical seabird rescued from a Cape Cod beach, at the organization's wildlife rehabilitation facility in Eastham, Mass. A scientist from the Massachusetts Audubon Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary science said a masked booby had never been reported before on Massachusetts soil. (Stephanie Ellis/Wild Care, Inc., via AP)
A tropical bird never before seen in Massachusetts has been rescued from a Cape Cod beach after it was likely blown off course by Hurricane Jose.
Wild Care, a wildlife rehabilitation facility in Eastham, says the masked booby was found Tuesday at a Wellfleet beach.
Wild Care Executive Director Stephanie Ellis tells the Cape Cod Times (bit.ly/2xAINDN ) the bird was thin, weak and experiencing respiratory discomfort likely due to a fungal infection.
Massachusetts Audubon science coordinator Mark Faherty says a masked booby has never before been reported on the state's soil. He says a charter captain reported seeing one about 100 miles (161 kilometers) south of Nantucket in 2015.
The seabirds are more common in the Gulf of Mexico.
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