The 2020 fall season, which birding organizations and publications define as 1 August-30 November, was particularly noteworthy in Arizona for the large number of rare birds reported and the unusually high totals for some migrants. Several factors likely contributed to this pattern, including weather conditions and scarce food resources in some areas. This report summarizes many of these sightings. All the rarities reviewed by the Arizona Bird Committee have been accepted unless otherwise noted (Rosenberg and Radamaker 2021). Data from reports of species not on the ABC’s review list were found at the Arizona Field Ornithologists photo documentation page (AZFO 2020) and eBird (eBird 2020).

Cape May Warbler
Cape May Warbler. Photo by Christina Kondrat-Smith.