There are 12 regular Texas vireos. Plus (at least) 1 semi-regular rarity.
The 1st key to vireos is their song!! Learn it!! Most are quite distinctive, the exception being the 3 in the Solitary Vireo complex.
The photos below tell most of the visual story: the vireos can be divided into plain-winged vireos and wing-barred vireos. 5 of the 12 are fairly easy IDs. The Solitary Vireo complex is a bit harder but 2 of those are mostly out west.
That leaves 4 intermediate in difficulty. I put Gray Vireo and Bell’s Vireo in this group, but they are really not that hard. For Bell’s it’s song, song, song!!!! For Gray it’s the tail up-wag and location. The Warbling and Philadelphia are perhaps one of the more difficult to separate at times.
White-eyed Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Yellow-throated Vireo
Philadelphia Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Philadelphia vs Warbling
The keys to Warbling and Philadelphia are the eye-line + lore and where’s the yellow?
Eye-line + lore:
- think Chipping Sparrow vs Clay-colored Sparrow
- Philadelphia: eye-line goes through the eye and includes dark lores
- Warbling: indistinct eye-line only in back of eye. Lores is pale.
Where’s the yellow?
- Philadelphia: brightest yellow in the center of throat and breast.
- Warbling: Brightest yellow on the flanks.
Mnemonic: Philadelphia was the center of the Revolutionary War.
Blue-headed Vireo (Solitary Vireo Complex)
Plumbeous Vireo (Solitary Vireo Complex)
Cassin’s Vireo (Solitary Vireo Complex)
Hutton’s Vireo
Bell’s Vireo
Gray Vireo
No photos yet
Black-capped Vireo
No photos yet
Black-whiskered Vireo
