Cassin's Vireo
Vireo cassinii
Also known as: Solitary Vireo Sp.
About This Species
A small, greyish vireo of coniferous and mixed forest in western North America during the breeding season, wintering in Mexico and the southwestern United States. It moves deliberately through mid-canopy foliage gleaning insects, and its slow, deliberate song of paired phrases is often easier to detect than the bird itself. Open coniferous woodland in late spring, when males sing steadily to defend territory, is the best time to look.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- Watching quietly from a distance as it works through foliage is sufficient, since chasing a moving canopy bird for a closer look rarely succeeds and risks pushing it off territory.
- Migratory bird protections differ between its United States and Canadian breeding range and its Mexican wintering range, so treat the whole range with the same care rather than assuming uniform rules.
- Limit the use of playback calls near a singing male, since repeated artificial calls can distract it from actual territorial defence or feeding.
LCAvesPasseriformesVireonidae
Seasonal Activity
277,065 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
All monthsThis month
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Vireonidae
Photo
(c) Jerry Oldenettel, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA)
CC-BY-NC-SA-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.