Viréo à tête noire— Quebec wildlife

The black-capped vireo (Vireo atricapilla) is a small bird native to the United States and Mexico. It was listed as an endangered species in the United States in 1987. It is the only Vireo that is sexually dichromatic. Recovery of the species' population contributed to its delisting in 2018. The IUCN lists the species as "near threatened."

Description

The black-capped vireo is a songbird about 12 cm (4.5 inches ) in length. Sexually mature males are olive green above and white below with faint yellow flanks. The crown and upper half of the head is black with a partial white eye ring and lores. The iris is brownish-red and the bill is black. Females are duller in color than males and have a slate-gray crown and underparts washed with greenish yellow. First-year males often have more extensive gray in the cap, similar to adult females.

Habitat and range

The historic breeding distribution of the black-capped vireo extended south from south-central Kansas through central Oklahoma and Texas to central Coahuila, Mexico. At present, the range extends from Oklahoma south through the Edwards Plateau and Big Bend National Park, Texas, to at least the Sierra Madera in central Coahuila, and south to southwestern Tamaulipas. In Oklahoma, the black-capped vireo is found only in Blaine, Cleveland, Cotton and Comanche Counties. It winters along the west coast of Mexico from southern Sonora to Guerrero.