Sighting Record for Utah

Common name:	Blue-headed Vireo
Scientific name:	Vireo solitarius
Date:	9/20/25
Time:	13:30
Length of time observed:	10 minutes
Number:	1
Age:	?
Sex:	?
Location:	Antelope Island - Garr Ranch
County:	Davis
Latilong:	40.924941, -112.167785
Elevation:	~4200 ft
Distance to bird:	2 to 5 meters
Optical equipment:	Leica Ultravid 8x42 HD
Weather:	Sunny, Warm, ~75 Degrees F
Light Conditions:	Good
Description: Size of bird:	~6 inches, smallish songbird/passerine
(Description:) Basic Shape:	Large headed, short tailed chunky passerine
(Description:) Overall Pattern:	Gray, Green/Yellow and White
(Description:) Bill Type:	Short thick bill with a small hook
(Description:) Field Marks and Identifying Characteristics:	While walking through the picnic area at Garr Ranch, we had a couple of solitary vireos feeding low in the canopy of the Elm Trees. The first bird was a fairly typical Cassin's Vireo, a solitary vireo with spectacles, a lightish gray hood (not contrasting with the back but maintaining similar color down to the wings) with gray head or "hood" blending into white throat, a fairly dull greenish wash to flanks and vent and with greenish edges to the secondaries. Fairly close by was a second solitary vireo and my initial impression in the field was that this was a very bright and contrasty solitary vireo, with a dark gray head, bold spectacles, a contrasting white throat, and lots of yellow and green in the flanks, vent and back (much more lemony yellow than the other vireo present, especially in bright sunlight). The secondary edging was also noticeably brighter in this individual than the other present. I called Esther and Patrick over and told them that we need to get photos and it was a good candidate for BHVI. The bird was very cooperative and we watched it for a good 10 minutes and snapped lots of photos. Even with changes of light from the bird moving into bright sunlight and into the shade, The bird maintained these field marks (dark-headed appearance with a pretty strong demarcation between the gray on the head and the white in the throat, contrasting dark gray head and fairly abrupt transition to a green back) as it moved from bright sunlight to shaded areas in the lower canopy. Watching the bird for so long at close range and in comparison to a nearby CAVI solidified my initial impression that this bird was a good candidate for a Blue-headed. I'd be somewhat wary of completely relying on the three sets of photos as we all had different cameras and I admit (at least for my photos) some are overexposed, especially in sunlight. I think it is helpful to see all the photos - regardless of quality from the three cameras to see a bit of variation in the images in both shade and sunlight. I also cannot promise that all photos in the eBird list are of the particular bird in question, but I can confirm that at least those that I added to the list are. (see photos)
Song or call & method of delivery:
Behavior:	Slowly feeding and picking insects from low in the canopy, providing excellent views at close range for a good ~10 minutes or so.
Habitat:	Tall deciduous and somewhat manicured area of trees at the ranch.
Similar species and how were they eliminated:	The only other species that needs to be considered here is Cassin's Vireo, which is of course a difficult ID especially as solitary vireo species are typically at their brightest during post-breeding/fall migration. Cassin's are somewhat variable from dull individuals to fairly bright and contrasty (I've had a handful of "solitary vireo sp.'s" in Utah due to the overlap of these two species). This particular bird stood out to me as having a dark gray head and a strong clean separation from the white throat, much more lemony yellow on the flanks, vent, and even brighter secondary edging, and a fairly clean line cutoff between the dark gray head/hood nape and greenish yellow back. I will mention that the hood and lores didn't seem to be different in darkness/color (I have seen many Blue-headed Vireos, in fact more BHVI than Cassin's) and I do not feel like this is a reliable field mark although this bird didn't have much difference, if at all in the darkness of the lores vs. the rest of the head/hood. This is still not an easy ID and I would expect discussion amongst the committee on this record.
Previous experience with this & similar species:	I've had more experience over the years with BHVI than Cassin's, although much more with Cassin's in recent years since moving back to Utah. BHVI's nest at our family cabin in northern Minnesota and I have seen them regularly in Wisconsin, Minnesota and a handful in Texas.
References consulted:	Memory, Bryant Olsen, and Mike Malmquist (I sent my BOC photos to my dad who was in Minnesota at our cabin where he has been for two months this summer/fall and has been regularly seeing BHVI
Description from:	Notes taken at the time of the sighting
Observer:	Max Malmquist
Observer's address:	2377 East Longview Drive
Observer's e-mail address:	**
Other observers who independently identified this bird:	Esther Sumner, Patrick McAtee. I believe Bryant Olsen and his class may have seen this individual the next day? There was a report of a BHVI the week before at the same location but I never saw photos of that individual and won't try to convince anyone it was the same bird.
Date prepared:	10-21-2025
Additional material:	Photos, eBird checklist
Additional comments:	I apologize for the delayed submission - I had a very busy fall work schedule and also travelled twice to California in between this sighting and the time of submitting this report. Sorry!