warbling vireo

warbling vireo (Vireo gilvus)
Photo © David W. Brewer

FEATURES
The warbling vireo is five and one-half inches in length. It does not have wing bars. The breast feathers are white, and there is a white stripe above the eye. The eye stripe does not have black borders. The back feathers are green-gray.

BEHAVIORS
The warbling vireo is a common migrant and a common summer resident statewide. It lives in open woods and is usually seen around streams, ponds and lakes. This species feeds mainly on insects but may also take fruits. Its nest is built high in a tree and is the shape of a hanging cup. Three to five eggs make up a clutch. The warbling vireo winters in Mexico and Central America. Spring migrants begin arriving in Illinois in April. Fall migrants start appearing in early September.

​Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Vireonidae