Bell's Vireo in Oakland Co. - 12 Jun 2026

Today's shout-out goes to Harvey Groom (finding) and Armand Collins (ID'ing) a Bell's Vireo next to the Starbuck's and Shell Station on Beck Rd. and Citygate Dr. in Novi, Oakland County, MI yesterday. Originally thought to be a White-eyed Vireo the sound recording and subsequent photos by several additional observers pushed the ID to a Bell's Vireo (Vireo bellii), a bird that breeds in the Midwest-to-SW portion of the US. 

- image courtesy of Cornell's Birds of the World

The Bell's Vireo was heard singing this morning and seen by numerous birders at the foot of Citygate Dr. next to the Starbucks in the vicinity where the road meets gravel (large truck parking area). I decided to take a drive to look for it after lunch. 

I arrived shortly before 2 pm and found Andrew Simon listening for the bird that was singing in the field behind the Starbucks and south of the Citygate Dr. gravel parking area. 

Sure enough, I was able to pick up the song and get a recording via the Merlin App. The Bell's Vireo then made a brief appearance atop the bushes on the other side of the phragmites before dropping down, then reappearing briefly. We both tried desperately to get photos but were frustrated (?) by our attempts. 

Andrew then left me to continue listening / looking for the bird on my own. A few minutes after he left the Bell's Vireo started singing close to the road, then flew across the road to the trees on the north side of the gravel path. 

I was able to track it down, and despite high winds battering the trees,  see it singing in low branches. Under mid-afternoon horrible lighting I managed to get the camera (Sony a1 II and Sony 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens + 1.4TCII TC) on it as it swayed into view.

The bird showed dark eyes that immediately precluded a White-eyed Vireo. The grayish-green head showed a pale white supraloral stripe that blends with a slightly whiter eye-ring that is similar to the "goggled" appearance of a Blue-headed Vireo but the eye-ring on this bird is thicker over the eye. Cheeks are grayish, throat and chest are whitish while the flanks, belly and undertail region is significantly yellower. This appearance is consistent with Eastern populations of V. bellii (more western populations are grayish overall). 

Depending on lighting conditions (like below) the head can appear olive-green like the back feathers (see below); otherwise head color is slightly lighter than body/back coloration. Wingbars are present w/ the lower wingbar more prominent (again consistent w/ Bell's Vireo). According to Cornell's Birds of the World juvenile birds tend to have more strongly-contrasting wingbars. This bird is presumed to be an adult. 

Still on the north side of the gravel path the bird would perch, sing for several iterations, then continuing moving through adjacent trees. Here it flew to the next set of trees to the west where it swayed into view with more of the sky in the background. I could see the lighter throat/chest relative to the more-yellow belly/underparts. The white eye-ring seemed more prominent than the paler supraloral stripe. 

In these images the bill is pale-pink with the culmen (upper bill) slightly darker than the mandible (lower bill). In this strong lighting I could even see the blood vessels in the bill. Dark spots can be seen in front and back of eye and depending on angle can appear as a dark line through the eye.

At this light angle the iris appears brown.

The Bell's Vireo then flew back across the road to the east and repeated the circuit in somewhat of a figure-eight pattern (SE-SW-NE-NW-SE...). Now farther back into the field it posed momentarily on the stems of the taller shrubs while continuing to sing. 

Elizabeth Bochenek arrived and I helped get her onto the bird. At one point it flew to a dead snag and sang for several minutes and allowed us to get nice looks at it. Jim Pavlik then arrived and was able to see it in the same snag.

It then flew back across the road and I said my goodbyes. 

According to the Introductory notes on the species (courtesy of Cornell's Birds of the World website): 

Although not strikingly colored, nor blessed with a fine voice, this little bird will win a secure place in the affections of anyone who comes to know him well.” J. B. May, 1939 (1: 405)

The Bell's Vireo is a small, insectivorous species that breeds in the central and southwestern United States and northern Mexico and overwinters primarily in central and southern Mexico and Baja California. Discovered by John James Audubon and named for his friend and companion, John Bell, on Audubon's 1843 expedition to the Missouri River, it occupies dense, low vegetation in shrub-dominated and woodland habitats, including willow riparian, mesquite brushland or woodland, shrubby old-fields, shrub/sapling-stage habitats, and riparian scrub, especially in arid environments.

Although drab in appearance with no plumage differences between the sexes, the song of the Bell's Vireo is unmistakable. Songs consist of a rapid sequence of different notes showing remarkable variability of structure, often ending with an emphatic slurred note. Males are persistent singers on the breeding grounds.

Thanks again to all who posted updates on the Bell's Vireo. Discord currently has threads in the Michigan Birds Discord under # bells-vireo-oakland and # oakland-chat. 

stakeout Bell's Vireo, Novi (2026), Oakland, Michigan, US
Jun 12, 2026 1:50 PM - 2:16 PM
Protocol: Traveling
0.045 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     Bell’s Vireo stakeout. Pt cloudy, windy, 78F. Gravel parking lot at foot of Citygate Dr. Elizabeth Bochenek and Jim Pavlik arrived and saw bird. More images and writeup can be found in my blog post: https://birdingthroughglass.blogspot.com/2026/06/bells-vireo-in-oakland-co-12-jun-2026.html
8 species

Bell's Vireo (Vireo bellii)  1     Continuing at pin. Singing loudly despite high winds and posing atop bushes next to parked white cargo truck. Looks like a cross between Eastern Warbling Vireo and Philadelphia Vireo. Photos. And recording. Complete writeup and additional images can be found in my blog post: https://birdingthroughglass.blogspot.com/2026/06/bells-vireo-in-oakland-co-12-jun-2026.html
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)  2
Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)  2
Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis)  1
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)  1
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  1
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  3
Northern Yellow Warbler (Setophaga aestiva)  2

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S356427777

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)