All,
Like Paula, I have been wondering if this bird is a hybrid. Presumably
our vireos can hybridize but I can't figure out which other vireo might
be involved. I haven't taken the time to look and see which breeding
ranges overlap, etc. One thing I did do though is look in the Pyle
Guide to see the characteristics of the eye color in Red-eyed Vireos.
Pyle claims that while most second year Red-eyed Vireos should have red
eyes by this time of year, some may still have brown eyes or a brownish
tint and some may never get a full red eye. This bird's eye does look
black but that could be a characteristic of the photo, the lighting,
etc. Hard to tell. If it's a hybrid then eye color probably wouldn't
mean much. The other thing to consider is that if it's a full Red-eyed
Vireo with some sort of weird leucistic characteristics, that could
affect the eye color as well. With this bird, we will probably never
know but it is fun trying to unravel the puzzle.
Sue
Paula Sullivan wrote:
VA-Birders,
Cliff's mystery bird still puzzles me. If it is a Red-eyed Vireo,
something is wrong with it, such as leucism, or it is a hybrid. I do
not know if vireos hybridize, although our American vireos are all in
the same genus. Does anyone know?
The photo is such a good, close-up one that the lack of a red eye is
very strange. Paul Woodward suggested that it might be a 2nd year
Red-eyed Vireo which, he said, would "account for the brown eye..... "
The eye actually looked black to me. I checked "The Birds of North
America Online" and read the following: " In Basic I plumage, iris
brown. By end of first winter (Mar), iris becomes red, shade varying
individually from dull brick red to bright crimson." So, in May, all
Red-eyed Vireos should have red eyes. Also, even birds in Basic I
plumage have eye-lines, which are "blackish neutral gray" and an
eye-line is totally lacking in Cliff's bird.
So this is a strange Red-eyed Vireo, indeed, if that is what it is.
Anyone for "Black-eyed Vireo?"
Paula Sullivan
Alexandria
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