Vireo atricapilla
The Black-capped Vireo (Vireo atricapilla) is a diminutive and distinctive songbird, measuring about 11.5-13 cm (4.5-5.1 in) in length and weighing a mere 8-10 g (0.28-0.35 oz). Males are instantly recognizable by their striking, glossy black cap contrasting sharply with prominent white spectacles encircling the eye, an olive-green back, dusky flanks, and clean white underparts, often accentuated by two faint white wing bars. Females share a similar pattern but have a duller, grayer cap, maki...
This species primarily inhabits arid scrublands, dense shrubby vegetation, and open woodlands, favoring oak-juniper savannas and brushlands up to 2,000 meters in elevation.
Their diet consists predominantly of insects, including caterpillars, grasshoppers, beetles, and spiders, which they acquire by gleaning from foliage; they also consume small berries in late summer and fall.
Black-capped Vireos are diurnal, active foragers, constantly gleaning insects from the foliage of shrubs and small trees, often in the mid to lower canopy. Males are highly territorial during the breeding season, defending their patch with persistent, complex songs delivered from prominent perche...
The Black-capped Vireo's breeding range is concentrated in the south-central United States, primarily across the Edwards Plateau and adjacent regions of central Texas, extending north into western Oklahoma, and south into northeastern Coahuila, Nuevo León, and western Tamaulipas in Mexico. Follow...
Near Threatened
- The Black-capped Vireo was one of the first bird species in the United States to be delisted from the Endangered Species Act due to successful recovery efforts in 2018. - It is considered among the smallest of North American vireos, a testament to its delicate structure. - Historically, up to 9...