Hutton's Vireo Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesHutton's Vireo
Adult
Small, chunky songbird with short neck and fairly thick bill. Broad white eyering on olive-gray head; wings and tail with yellowish edging. Two bold whitish wingbars.
© Jerry Ting / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, December 27, 2019Adult
Small, chunky songbird with short neck and fairly thick bill. Broad white eyering on olive-gray head; wings and tail with yellowish edging. Two bold whitish wingbars.
© Tim Lenz / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, August 08, 2010Adult
Song is a series of hoarse or burry whistled notes, sometimes with a 2-parted, rising quality.
© Hervé JACOB / Macaulay LibraryOaxaca, March 12, 2019Adult
Small chunky songbird with short neck and fairly thick bill. Strong white eyering and two bold whitish wingbars. Prominent yellow edges to wing and tail feathers.
© Steven Mlodinow / Macaulay LibraryWashington, October 10, 2010Adult
Underparts can range from mostly olive (as shown) to whitish. Wingbars are usually bold.
© Ryan Schain / Macaulay LibraryWashington, November 03, 2018Adult
Both sexes help build the nest, which hangs from a horizontal fork in a slender branch and is made of grasses and plant fibers held together with spiderweb and camouflaged with moss, plant down, and lichen.
© Larry Arbanas / Macaulay LibraryArizona, May 10, 2006Adult
Typically breeds in evergreen forests and woodlands. Often flicks wings while foraging, like a kinglet does.
© Matt Davis / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, December 03, 2016Adult
Breeding habitat includes conifer forests and woodlands, as well as other mostly evergreen habitats including live oak, chaparral, madrone, and pine-oak-juniper.
© Bryan Calk / Macaulay LibraryTexas, January 06, 2017Similar SpeciesRuby-crowned Kinglet
Adult male
When adult males flash their red crown, Ruby-crowned Kinglets can easily be separated from Hutton's Vireos, but when the crown is not visible, look for the dark bar below the white wing bar on kinglets but not Hutton's Vireos.
© Paul Jacyk 🦉 / Macaulay LibraryOhio, April 04, 2017Similar SpeciesRuby-crowned Kinglet
Adult
Ruby-crowned Kinglets have a thinner bill than Hutton's Vireos, but one of the best ways to separate them is the dark bar below the white wing bar on Ruby-crowned Kinglets, but not on Hutton's Vireos.
© Evan Lipton / Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, December 06, 2016Species in This Family
Vireos, Shrike-Babblers, and Erpornis(Order: Passeriformes, Family: Vireonidae)
More to Read
Don't miss a thing! Join our email list
The Cornell Lab will send you updates about birds,
birding, and opportunities to help bird conservation.