Wildlife of the Week: Warbling Vireo

Listen for this bird’s nesting song when walking by trees

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A Vireo perched on a treebranch.

MASON MARON

In the springs and summers of Pullman, one can often hear the bubbly song of the Warbling Vireo.

 This small songbird does well in urban and suburban areas, building its nests in forested parks and creek areas, according to Birds of the World. When sitting on its nest, these small birds continue to sing.

In the winter, these birds, which breed throughout the U.S., take the same trip many humans do to the warm parts of Mexico. There they wait in pine-oak forests and sometimes coffee plantations, according to BirdWeb.org. In April, they begin their return flight north to do it all again.

Despite their long and perilous yearly journey, the Warbling Vireo is one of a handful of North American bird species with increasing populations in the wild, according to Birds of the World. This is good news for the future of the species, as a recent study found that overall bird populations in the continent had dropped almost 30% in the last 50 years.