{"id":3800,"date":"2012-07-14T16:57:56","date_gmt":"2012-07-14T22:57:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/earbirding.com\/blog\/?p=3800"},"modified":"2012-08-21T14:13:54","modified_gmt":"2012-08-21T20:13:54","slug":"how-fast-is-that-vireo-singing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/earbirding.com\/blog\/archives\/3800","title":{"rendered":"How Fast Is That Vireo Singing?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Gray Vireo, Rabbit Valley, Mesa Co., Colorado, May 2012 (copyright Andrew Spencer)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I can still remember the first time I heard a vireo “complex song”.\u00a0 It was after completing a transect for Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory<\/a>\u00a0 in San Miguel county, Colorado, as I was walking through some pinyon-juniper forest, looking for things to record.\u00a0 I found a singing Plumbeous Vireo, and set up to record it singing.\u00a0 No sooner I had turned on the recorder, though, when it started belting out this crazy run-on jumbled song<\/a>!\u00a0 I was taken completely by surprise, not even knowing Plumbeous Vireos had it in them to sing so awesomely.<\/p>\n

Since that day I’ve heard complex song from many vireo species, but it’s still something I don’t hear very often, and a treat whenever I do.\u00a0 This type of vireo song is mentioned fairly extensively in BNA, often under different names.\u00a0 For Bell’s and Black-capped Vireo it’s called “courtship song”, and said to be given when the male is closely associated with the female bird.\u00a0 For other species, such as Plumbeous Vireo, it’s called “complex song”, and said to be given in a variety of circumstances.\u00a0 In my experience, though, it’s most often given by agitated birds, either after playback, or after an encounter with another member of their species. \u00a0 Occasionally a song that is either complex song, or possibly subsong, is heard from birds during fall migration as well.<\/p>\n

Most vireo complex songs tend to follow a pattern, with song-like phrases mixed with high, squeaky notes.\u00a0 There appears to be some variability, with a higher agitation rate correlating to fewer song-like notes, more high-pitched notes, a faster pace, and sometimes a longer strophe length.\u00a0 The Solitary Vireo complex, Gray, Warbling, and Yellow-throated Vireos all fall into this broad pattern.\u00a0 Hutton’s Vireo also seems to belong in this group, though like its primary song, its complex song is also atypical.<\/p>\n

Black-capped and Bell’s Vireos seem to give more discrete complex songs, called courtship song in BNA for both these species.\u00a0 In both species the complex song is reminiscent of their primary song, but quieter, faster, and more jumbled sounding, but without the long, continuous run-on character of the above group and without the incorporated high-pitched squeaky notes.\u00a0 White-eyed Vireo may also fall into this group, though it’s song seems to have more call-like elements and is more run-on.<\/p>\n

A third group, made up on Red-eyed and Black-whiskered (and presumably Philadelphia) Vireos seems to rarely give a complex song at all.\u00a0 Indeed, BNA doesn’t mention such a vocalization for Philadelphia or Red-eyed Vireo, and only briefly for Black-whiskered.\u00a0 What I’ve heard from Red-eyed sounded more like the complex songs of the first group than the second, but in general seem less well differentiated from the primary song.<\/p>\n

Below are examples of complex songs for every species for which I could find recordings.\u00a0 Needless to say, if any of you reading this have recordings of species not represented here, or more examples of any of these species, please let me know!<\/p>\n

Plumbeous Vireo<\/h6>\n

Probably because I consider it the “default” vireo complex song I’m going to cover this species first.\u00a0 All of the vireos of the Solitary Vireo complex sing similar complex songs; typically these are fast, jumbled series of song-like notes, call-like notes, and high-pitched squeaky notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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