seen well twice but not yet photographed in California, and I don't actually have written details either....RED-FACED WARBLER is a very rare vagrant in California, with just about a dozen records. There have been spring and fall vagrants in southern California, but only a single vagrant to northern California (on SE Farallon I., of course). Most exciting have been a very few singing birds in proper breeding habitat in remote mountains of southeastern California; my State bird was one of those surprises.
All of my California records are listed below. Those preceded by H were found or co-found by me personally; those preceded by K receive some partial credit (e.g., I was involved in sorting out i.d. of a previously discovered bird or refound a vagrant that had been thought to have left). These are my personal Red-faced Warbler records:
5/17/75 Clark Mt. SBE a singing male watched by the dozen of us who had hiked up all night; what a fabulous find!See the family page for county abbreviations. All photos & text © 2003 Don Roberson; all rights reserved.
9/13/82 Pt. Loma SD a molting adult; I was standing nearby Richard Webster when he found this one (but get no credit at all....). I saved space in my notes to write a description, but apparently never did so....