GRAY VIREO 275 



Grinnell and Swarth (1913) say: "Tlie presence of the gray vireo 

 is most easily ascertainable through the peculiar and far-reaching 

 song." Describing the song, which they attribute to the male only, 

 they state: "The song of tlie gray vireo is loud and full-toned, in 

 volume and quality. In these respects it reminds the hearer strongly 

 of the Cassin Vireo, yet with the twang and less deliberate utterance 

 of a western tanager. In measure, and in the suggestion of alternate 

 rising and falling inflection, it recalls the least vireo. 



Grinnell (1922) mentions the "broken, post-nuptially rendered song 

 of the male — intermittent and sketchy, yet distinct enough from the 

 songs of other vireos to be recognized at once." Speaking of the female 

 he said : "The only note she gave was a low harsh churr or shray^ given 

 now and then as she hopped slowly through the twiggery." 



Frank Stephens (1878) says: "They sing pretty steadily, the song 

 consisting of a couple of syllables repeated with different inflections, 

 something like chu-wee, chu-wee, chu-wee, generally pausing a little 

 after three or four notes. Sometimes the order is reversed. This seems 

 to be the song of the male, as the only female that I am positive of 

 having heard, sung more like V. pusillus. Sometimes when alarmed 

 they will scold like a wren, when near to them, as they are singing, 

 a sort of whistling sound can be heard between the notes." 



Ealph Hoffmann (1927) in an attempt to reduce the songs to 

 syllables gives them as "c7?ee toi, chee wi, c/ioo or cite iveet^ cliee; 

 che churr loeety 



W. E. D. Scott (1885) describes the song as "composed of single 

 whistling notes, generally delivered rather slowly, and seemingly 

 with hesitation, and in an abstracted way, as if the performer were 

 thinking the while of other affairs; and yet frequently this sort of 

 abstraction seems cast aside, and the same series of notes are given 

 with a precision and brilliancy that calls to mind a fine performance 

 of a Scarlet Tanager, or even of a Robin." 



Field marhf.. — Roger T. Peterson (1941) points out that the species 

 "has a narroio tohite eye-ring but differs from other Vireos having 

 similar eye-rings by having no wlnghars or one faint one." The song 

 and the habit of flicking the long tail nervously as the gnatcatcher 

 does are the most readily noticed characteristics. 



Elliott Coues (1866) describes the bird as follows: "Tail very 

 long ; as long as the wings ; decidedly rounded | * * * Xhe wings 

 are short and remarkably rounded. * * * xiie colors of the spe- 

 cies are almost exactly those of plumbeus; * * * in form the 

 two birds are widely diverse. It is a smaller species than plumheus^ 

 but its greatly elongated tail make the total lengths of the two nearly 

 the same. * * * j^ is unnecessary to compare vicinior with any 

 other species, it is so very dissimilar from them all." 



