Similar Species
Red-eyed Vireo
Adult
Red-eyed Vireos are larger than Warbling Vireos with a stronger face pattern in which the white eyebrow stripe is bordered above and below by black lines.
© Jim Hully | Macaulay LibraryIllinois, September 02, 2016Similar Species
Philadelphia Vireo
Adult
Philadelphia Vireos are often extensively yellow below (although some show little to no yellow). Look for Philadelphia's dark line through the eye all the way to the bill; in Warbling Vireo the area next to the bill is pale.
© Luke Seitz | Macaulay LibraryMaine, September 22, 2011Similar Species
Tennessee Warbler
Breeding male
Tennessee Warblers are daintier, move more quickly, and have thinner, sharper bills than Warbling Vireos. Breeding males usually have contrasting gray heads and olive-green backs.
© Maurice Raymond | Macaulay LibraryQuebec, May 27, 2017Similar Species
Bell's Vireo
Adult (Arizona)
Bell's Vireos are grayer (or, in eastern North America, greener) than Warbling Vireos. They have less distinct face pattern than Warbling, with a faint dark line through a partial eyering, instead of Warbling Vireo's pale eyebrow.
© Jim Hully | Macaulay LibraryArizona, April 26, 2016Main Species
Warbling Vireo
Adult (Eastern)
Small, chunky songbird with a thicker bill. Brownish upperparts with no wingbars. Head is brownish with pale line over eye and dark line through eye.
© Daniel Jauvin | Macaulay LibraryQuebec, May 15, 2017Adult (Eastern)
Fresh spring birds can be washed yellowish on underparts (usually strongest on sides). Face pattern is fairly low contrast: brownish cap and line through eye with pale eyebrow stripe. Eyeline usually fades out just before it meets the bill.
© Ryan Schain | Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, May 10, 2012Adult (Western)
Forages by moving slowly through small branches, looking around carefully for insects. Note fairly thick bill and dark line through eye that fades out before it meets the bill.
© Larry Arbanas | Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, May 01, 2005Adult (Western)
Small songbird with a thicker bill and a slow, deliberate foraging style. Brownish upperparts lack wingbars; subdued face pattern with brownish line through eye (strongest behind the eye) and pale line over the eye.
© Ryan O'Donnell | Macaulay LibraryArizona, April 25, 2017Adult (Western)
Individuals that breed in the Rocky Mountains and west have darker gray-brown heads and sing a different song than individuals of eastern North America.
© John F. Gatchet | Macaulay LibraryArizona, March 07, 2017Habitat
Breeds mainly in mature deciduous woods, especially along streams and other wetlands.
© Iain Rayner | Macaulay LibraryOntario, May 21, 2017