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Help develop a Bird ID tool!

Red-eyed Vireo

Vireo olivaceus ORDER: PASSERIFORMES FAMILY: VIREONIDAE

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

One of the most common birds of the Eastern forests, the Red-eyed Vireo is heard far more than it is seen. It sings continuously from the forest canopy from dawn to dusk. The vireo's song is a series of phrases interspaced with short pauses, like the song of an American Robin broken into pieces.

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Appearance

Warblerlike
Warblerlike
Typical Voice

Adult Description

  • Small drab bird.
  • Back olive-green, whiter underneath.
  • Crown gray to blue-gray.
  • Eyebrow white with black stripe through the eye.
  • Eyes dark red.

Immature Description

Immature has brown eyes and yellower underparts.

Range Map Help

Red-eyed Vireo Range Map
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Field MarksHelp

  • Adult
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    Red-eyed Vireo

    Adult
    • Small, stocky olive-green songbird with white belly
    • Blue-gray cap and white eyebrow separated by dark stripe
    • Thin, dark line through eye
    • Dark red eye visible in good light
    • © Jim McCree, Bangor, Maine, May 2012
  • Juvenile
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    Red-eyed Vireo

    Juvenile
    • Small, stocky olive-green songbird with white belly
    • Short, stubby bill with hook at tip
    • Slaty blue/gray cap bordered by dark stripe
    • White eyebrow with thin, dark stripe through eye
    • © Bill Thompson, Hawley Bog, Massachusetts, September 2011
  • Adult
    Zoom In

    Red-eyed Vireo

    Adult
    • Stocky, olive-green songbird with contrasting white belly
    • Pale yellow undertail
    • White eyebrow
    • Thin, dark stripe through eye
    • © Ken Schneider, West Miramar ESL, Broward County, Florida, September 2010
  • Juvenile
    Zoom In

    Red-eyed Vireo

    Juvenile
    • Stocky, compact songbird
    • Bright olive-green back and wings with contrasting white belly
    • Pale yellow undertail
    • Blue/gray cap separated from white eyebrow by dark stripe
    • © Christian Hunold, John Heinz NWR, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, October 2010
  • Juvenile
    Zoom In

    Red-eyed Vireo

    Juvenile
    • Small, stocky songbird with stubby, hooked bill
    • Olive-green back and yellow undertail
    • Slaty blue-gray cap with dark border separating white eyebrow
    • Thin dark stripe through eye
    • © JasonbgNH, New Hampshire, August 2011