Thursday, October 08, 2020

Red-eyed Vireo, Kenidjack Valley, Cornwall

A short clip of Red-eyed Vireo. A first for me anywhere on planet earth. I was incredibly lucky to be in the right place at the right time. A bird I've waited 30 years to see in West Cornwall after spending nearly every autumn here.

Weirdly, as I walked into the valley I had this species on my mind, little knowing I was about to find out one was just a 20 minute walk away near the bottom of the valley. Then after searching for some time, I managed to be standing a few meters away from the person who relocated it. Many spent all day there without seeing it as it spent most of its time in the cover of a large garden.

There are about 150 records of Red-eyed Vireo (about 2 a year) in Britain, almost all in the western extremities of these islands - unsurprising for a species which breeds across North American and winters in South America.



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