Hutton's Vireo

Hutton's Vireo is a small, plain, olive-gray bird notable mainly for how closely it resembles the unrelated Ruby-crowned Kinglet—a case of convergent evolution that regularly confounds birders. It has a bold, broken white eye-ring that gives it a somewhat surprised, spectacled expression, along with two white wing bars on otherwise plain olive-gray wings.

Unlike most vireos, it is a non-migratory resident, staying in its evergreen oak and mixed-woodland habitat year-round along the Pacific coast and in the highlands of Mexico and Central America.

Key field marks

• Bold, broken white eye-ring (spectacled look)
• Two white wing bars
• Plain olive-gray overall, stockier build than a kinglet

Similar species

• Ruby-crowned Kinglet: thinner bill, constantly flicks its wings, more active and nervous foraging behavior, different (higher, chattery) call; male has a hidden red crown patch.
• Cassin's Vireo: larger, with a more contrasty head and cleaner white underparts.

Range and habitat

Hutton's Vireo is a permanent resident of evergreen oak woodlands, mixed oak-conifer forest, and coastal scrub along the Pacific coast from British Columbia to California, with additional resident populations in the highlands of Mexico and Central America.

Migration

Non-migratory; pairs typically hold territory year-round.

Behavior

Forages in a slower, more deliberate manner than the similar Ruby-crowned Kinglet, gleaning insects from leaves and twigs in the mid-canopy of oaks and conifers.

Voice

A repeated, monotonous "zu-wee, zu-wee" or "chee-dee, chee-dee" call, quite different from the kinglet's thin chattering notes.

Feeding

Mostly small insects and spiders gleaned from foliage; occasionally hover-gleans.

Nesting and breeding

Builds a hanging cup nest in a fork of a branch, often in an oak or conifer. The female incubates 3-4 eggs for about 2 weeks; pairs may remain together on the same territory across years.