Measurements
Both Sexes
- Length
- 5.1–5.9 in
13–15 cm - Wingspan
- 8.3 in
21 cm - Weight
- 0.4–0.5 oz
12–15 g
Other Names
- Viréo gris (French)
- Vireo gris (Spanish)
Cool Facts
- Gray Vireos wintering in western Texas feed predominantly on insects. In southwestern Arizona and adjacent Sonora, Mexico, however, wintering birds shift from a largely insectivorous summer diet to one of predominantely fruits.
- Although the Gray Vireo catches most of its insect food along the branches of trees and shrubs, it captures more insects on the ground than most vireos. It has been seen to scratch on the ground with its feet like a foraging towhee.
Habitat
Scrub
Found in desert scrub, mixed juniper or pinyon pine and oak scrub associations, and chaparral, in hot, arid mountains and high plains scrubland.
Food
Insects
Arthropods, some fruits.
Nesting
Nesting Facts
- Clutch Size
- 2–4 eggs
- Egg Description
- White with variable amount of small spots.
- Condition at Hatching
- Naked and pink, with eyes closed.
Nest Description
Open hanging cup of loosely to tightly woven grasses, mesquite or soft juniper bark, plant fiber, spider webs, and cocoons. Lined with fine grass, long vegetable fibers, hair, and cottony thistle down. Sometimes decorated with whole sagebrush or other leaves.
Nest Placement
Shrub
Behavior
Foliage Gleaner
Gleans from leaves, twigs, and branches. Sometimes hovers while feeding or takes prey in flight. Drops to ground to capture insects.
Conservation
Least Concern
Populations small and of low abundance, but appear stable or slightly increasing.
Credits
- Barlow, J. C., S. N. Leckie, and C. T. Baril. 1999. Gray Vireo (Vireo vicinior). In The Birds of North America, No. 447 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.