European Robin Reaches the Amazon

In December 2022, a European Robin was spotted in the Brazilian Amazon, believed to have crossed the Atlantic and traveled up the South American river on a cruise ship. Typically a sedentary species in Europe, this sighting marks a rare and unexpected vagrant occurrence in the Americas.

Another European Robin reached Florida in November 2023, crossing the Atlantic aboard the MSC Seashore cruise ship from the Mediterranean Sea. Recently, Ornithomedia reported an even more extraordinary sighting on iNaturalist: a European Robin was photographed on the Dutch vessel MS Volendam as it sailed along the Amazon River near Manaus. It is assumed the bird boarded the ship in Europe and stayed on for the Atlantic crossing.

This event marks the first Brazilian record of a European Robin. Coincidentally, the same month saw the first Eurasian Hobby for South America, a young bird discovered on a boat near the São Pedro and São Paulo archipelago off the coast of Brazil.