Bell’s Vireo

The noteworthy Bird reference site, AllAboutBirds says this about the Bell’s Vireo, “A tireless little bird of thickets and thorn scrub, the Bell’s Vireo nests from the Midwest to the Southwest and into northern Mexico. Though plain in plumage, males sing so energetically and distinctively that overlooking them during the breeding season is difficult. Nevertheless, with the loss of their preferred habitats across the continent, the species has become scarce in many places where it was once common.”

Fortunately, here at our farm-gone-wild, we must have just what this species needs because I hear them singing almost everywhere I go. I’ve only seen (and filmed) this species once before – on a day several years ago when I was sitting still for a long while amongst the thickets at the edge of our pond. That changed yesterday, when I was set up to film the Tree Swallows at Birdhouse “G” just across from the pond. Not far from that pair of swallows, there’s a line of brush that remains from where there was once a fence line that we removed a few years back.

I had been hearing the very distinctive song of the Bell’s Vireo, when I spotted a pair of tiny birds flitting and flying at warp speed in and around the nearby wild raspberry bush. I had been capturing some good shots of the Tree Swallows that are, for all intents and purposes, quite stationary from a photographic perspective. I had the camera lined up on that hole in the house and just had to press the shutter to capture the images. But, those little, drab-yellow birds were flying so fast… well… I would put them into the Hummingbird stratosphere for speed. I had no chance of getting a shot. Or, so I thought.

I tried anyway. Why not? That’s the point of my excursions around the property – of course along with just enjoying being in Nature and all her tranquility and splendor. And, while I ended up with a few dozen images of, well, nothing but thicket, the Universe was looking out for me. I was able to snap a few recognizable photos of the birds, and I even caught a few seconds of video, too!

It’s unfortunate that the wind was so strong and that I didn’t have any sort of filter on the microphone of my camera. But, I think this is still an amazing few seconds of a species that isn’t all that easy to catch.