Rare bird spotted at the famous Lost Gardens of Heligan

A juvenile night heron has been spotted in Cornwall at the Lost Gardens of Heligan.

A rare visitor to the UK, with only 23 confirmed visits last year and 12 confirmed visits this year, it is the first one to be seen in Cornwall since April 15, 2012.

The night heron is native to north and south America, as well as parts of Africa, Asia and Europe. Part of the population migrates from more southern areas to breed in parts of north America, Europe and northern and western Asia during the summer months. The birds migrate south again for winter during September and October after breeding.

Laura Curry from Heligan’s wildlife team explained: “It is quite likely that our juvenile night heron was blown off course on its way from mainland Europe to Africa.”

Donald Brignell, a Heligan visitor, spotted the night heron and said the bird “jumped up onto a branch just across the pond which is when I saw the movement. It sat there for about ten minutes while we were there.”

A very shy bird, the night heron is usually only witnessed at night or at dawn and dusk as it roosts in trees during the day. It normally lives in vegetated margins of fairly shallow watercourses including ponds, lakes, mangroves and marshes and is an opportunistic feeder, eating amphibians, fish, reptiles and insects.

“The chances are the juvenile bird has now continued on its southerly migration, however should anyone spot our overnight visitor anywhere in the nearby area then we would love to hear from you,” concluded Laura Curry.

Image courtesy of Donald Brignell