Aha! I've been trying to identify a vireo I saw in McDowell Forest Preserve in Naperville on Sunday. I thought it was maybe a blue-headed vireo; I didn't really see the blue, but the light was bad, and everything else seemed to match. However, your post makes me think that maybe it was a Philadelphia. Although I really didn't think it had as much yellow as the Philly seems to.
I also considered Tennessee warbler but considered that less likely for the reasons you mentioned: this bird was sitting on a low branch for a good two minutes fluffing itself, and I didn't think a warbler would move that slowly.
None of these birds are on my life list. The caveat to it all is this wry note I found near the bottom of Merlin's entry on blue-headed vireo: "Some birds are better left unidentified."
Good bet it was a Philadelphia as three of us had one during the Big Sit. Some Philadelphias are not very yellow. The other vireo to consider is the Warbling. It too can be yellow to beige-gray.
Thank you for writing this after your Sit. I loved it, maybe because I am a woman of a certain age, I have this question: during the lulls, especially during the civil twilight, how do you not doze off?
Aha! I've been trying to identify a vireo I saw in McDowell Forest Preserve in Naperville on Sunday. I thought it was maybe a blue-headed vireo; I didn't really see the blue, but the light was bad, and everything else seemed to match. However, your post makes me think that maybe it was a Philadelphia. Although I really didn't think it had as much yellow as the Philly seems to.
I also considered Tennessee warbler but considered that less likely for the reasons you mentioned: this bird was sitting on a low branch for a good two minutes fluffing itself, and I didn't think a warbler would move that slowly.
None of these birds are on my life list. The caveat to it all is this wry note I found near the bottom of Merlin's entry on blue-headed vireo: "Some birds are better left unidentified."
Good bet it was a Philadelphia as three of us had one during the Big Sit. Some Philadelphias are not very yellow. The other vireo to consider is the Warbling. It too can be yellow to beige-gray.
Thank you for writing this after your Sit. I loved it, maybe because I am a woman of a certain age, I have this question: during the lulls, especially during the civil twilight, how do you not doze off?
It's actually pretty stimulating engaging one's senses to detect any bird that may be nearby. Going to bed early the night before helps, too.