"Pale Yellow"

Warbling Vireo, Vireo gilvus

I got this picture of a Warbling Vireo last week in Hell Canyon near Jewel Cave National Monument. I was labeling the photo on my computer, and became curious as to the meaning of the Latin word, gilvus, in the bird's scientific name. Gilvus means pale yellow. That's a pretty good name to use for this vireo. You can see that the underside of the bird has a faint yellow wash. The yellow color is more pronounced on some individual birds, and that can lead to confusion with the more brightly colored Philadelphia Vireo. Just remember that Vireo gilvus is the pale yellow vireo, and you should be able to identify vireos like an expert.