16 October 2015. Ruthven park, Cayuga ON. I know that it’s only been a couple of weeks since I last celebrated a Blue-headed Vireo. But I can’t help it if one turns up to delight me. Today I spent a couple of hours at the bird observatory and while there found this beautiful Blue-headed Vireo in one of the mist nets. It was my pleasure to gently remove it, measure and weigh it, band it and photograph it. Here it is. Bird of the Day.
And, oh yes there were other nice encounters. At the bird observatory: a small flock of Rusty Blackbirds, a couple of Hermit Thrushes and half a dozen Eastern Bluebirds. Elsewhere: five-hundred, maybe a thousand, Ruddy Ducks, a hundred Bonaparte’s Gulls, a couple of late Barn Swallows, a trio of Tree Swallows and ten or fifteen American Pipits. All nice birds; but against a Blue-headed Vireo they had no chance.
A lovely bird indeed Peter. I got a couple of good shots earlier this Fall, but not at such close range. I was struck by the yellow flanks having never really had the chance to notice this field mark before.