Swainson's thrush
Swainson's thrush
One of the rarest species of visiting birds to Britain has turned up on Shetland when it should have been on its way to South America.

A Swainson's thrush, classed as "mega rare" in the UK, landed at Lerwick on Sunday, having taken a wrong turn. Instead of being in jungle it found itself several thousand miles off course in a wintry garden.

There are only usually a couple of recorded sightings in the UK each year and in many years, none. The Swainson's thrush (Catharus ustulatus), also called olive-backed thrush, can grow up to 8in long and is noted for its beautiful voice. It was named after William Swainson, an English ornithologist.

The bird breeds in Canada, Alaska and parts of the US, and migrates to Mexico or as far south as Argentina. Its coastal subspecies migrate down the Pacific coast and winter from Mexico to Costa Rica.