Plumbeous Vireo

The Plumbeous, Blue-headed, and the Cassin's Vireo were all considered one species, the Solitary Vireo, until the 1990's.  The Plumbeous is the species of the three that summers in the mountain forests of the inland West.  It is much less colorful than the other two, appearing lead-gray in all but the freshest of fall plumage, when just a touch of yellow may be visible.  In South Dakota, they are primarily found in the Black Hills, with some sightings in other select locations of the far western part of the state.

Habitat:

Found in pine and pine-oak forests of the mountain West, sometimes at elevations approaching 10,000 feet. They also are found as breeding birds along some lower-elevation riparian areas in the intermountain West. Migrants will use a variety of habitats, but primarily forested areas that resemble the various areas they use during the summer breeding season.

Diet:

Primarily feeds on insects and spiders.  They will also consume fruits and berries, especially during the winter months.

Behavior:

Climbs through foliage and branches in search of insects, usually relatively high in the forest canopy.  They are rather deliberate in their foraging behavior, similar to other vireo species. Plumbeous Vireos will also  occasionally fly out from a perch to snag flying insects in mid-air.

Nesting:

Late May through July. Males arrive on the breeding grounds first, and start scoping out potential nesting sites. When females arrive, males try to lure them to a nesting location through a display that consists of fanning out the tail and wings and swaying in front of her. Nests themselves are a small cup, built of grasses, bits of bark, roots, and weedstems, lined with finer plant material, and often decorated with mosses and lichens. The female lays between 3 and 5 eggs, and both sexes help to incubate them. The young hatch after about two weeks, with both parents helping to feed them. The young fledge from the nest after 10 to 14 days, but the family unit still stays together for some time, foraging together until they depart for the fall migration.

Song:

Varied song musical phrases and less musical chattering, typically with deliberate pauses, often repeating.  Other calls include a harsh chattering alarm call.

• Click here to hear the song of a Plumbeous Vireo¹
• Click here to hear the call of a Plumbeous Vireo²

Migration:

Summers throughout pine and oak forests of the mountain West.  Winters in the extreme southwestern U.S., Mexico, and Central America. 

Interactive eBird Map:

Click here to access an interactive eBird map of Plumbeous Vireo sightings

Similar Species:

Plumbeous Vireo are similar in appearance to multiple other vireo species, particularly the Cassin's Vireo and Blue-headed Vireo, the two other species that were all once considered one species with the Plumbeous Vireo (the "Solitary Vireo).

• Cassin's Vireo - Cassin's Vireo are not a species found in South Dakota, and thus don't pose an identification issue here. However, they are both found in similar areas on their wintering grounds. Cassin's Vireo tend to have more yellowish and greenish tones on their flanks and sides, compared to the all gray Plumbeous Vireo.
• Blue-headed Vireo - Blue-headed Vireo are found in eastern South Dakota, and aren't likely to overlap in range with the Plumbeous Vireo (found in the Black Hills of South Dakota). In terms of appearance, Blue-headed Vireos are the most colorful of the vireos in this list, with greenish tones on their back and yellowish tones on their flanks.
• Gray Vireo - Gray Vireo aren't an identification challenge in South Dakota, but they are in their range in the southwestern US, where they may overlap with Plumbeous Vireo. Gray Vireos lack the "spectacles" look of the other species in this list, although they do have a thin white eye-ring. They also tend to have paler and less obvious wingbars than a Plumbeous Vireo.

Cassin's Vireo	Blue-headed Vireo	Blue-headed Vireo	Gray Vireo

Conservation Status:

They are quite frequent hosts to cowbird parasitism, but populations are considered stable, or perhaps even increasing. They are found in a relatively broad geographic area, and are common in parts of that range. The IUCN considers the Plumbeous Vireo to be a species of "Least Concern".

Further Information:

• USGS Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter, Plumbeous Vireo
• WhatBird - Plumbeous Vireo
• Audubon Guide - Plumbeous Vireo

Photo Information:

Photo courtesy of Larry Burlingame.

Audio File Credits:

• ¹Ron Overholtz. Recorded in Mono County, California on June 24th, 2018. Original recording and information available from xeno-canto.
• ²Lance A.M. Benner. Recorded in Los Angeles County, California on June 2nd, 2019. Original recording and information available from xeno-canto.