Gray vireo facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Gray vireo |
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Vireo
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vicinior
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The gray vireo (Vireo vicinior) is a small bird found in North America. It's a type of passerine bird, which means it's a perching bird.
These birds spend their summers, or "breed," in the southwestern United States, northern Baja California, and western Texas. When winter comes, many gray vireos fly south. They are migratory birds. They spend the colder months in northwestern Mexico, including Sonora state and the southern Baja California peninsula.
Only a few gray vireos stay in one place all year round. This happens mainly in Big Bend National Park in southwest Texas. You can often find these birds in dry, bushy areas, especially where juniper trees grow. They like the slopes of mountains in the southwest, living at heights between 400 and 2500 meters (about 1,300 to 8,200 feet).
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What Does a Gray Vireo Look Like?
The gray vireo is about 14 centimeters (5.5 inches) long. Its feathers are gray on top and a dull white underneath.
It has a light stripe on its wing, called a wing bar. You might also notice a faint ring around its eye. This bird has a short, thick beak. Male and female gray vireos look very similar.
One special thing about the gray vireo is how it twitches its tail from side to side. This is unusual for a vireo! Its tail movement is more like that of a gnatcatcher.
Sounds and Calls
The gray vireo has a unique song. It often sounds like hu-wee, chu-wee, che-weet, chee. It also makes sounds like ch-churr-weet, churr, and schray.
Gray Vireo Behavior
The gray vireo can be hard to spot because it likes to hide. It lives in dense plants like pinyon-juniper woodland or scrub oak woodland. These birds are quite shy.
What Do Gray Vireos Eat?
Gray vireos mainly eat insects. Birds that spend the winter in Mexico also eat fruit. This helps them get enough energy during the colder months.
Nesting and Life Cycle
Gray vireos build their nests close to the ground, usually within 2 meters (about 6.5 feet) high. They often choose thorny trees for protection.
Their nests are made from dry grasses, bits of plants, shredded bark, and spiderwebs. They line the inside with soft grasses and fine fibers.
A female gray vireo usually lays three or four white eggs. Both parents take turns sitting on the eggs to keep them warm. This is called incubation and it lasts for about thirteen days.
The baby birds, called chicks, leave the nest about two weeks after hatching. Sometimes, a brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) tries to lay its eggs in a gray vireo's nest. If this happens, the gray vireo parents might leave their nest and start over somewhere else.
See also
In Spanish: Vireo gris para niños
