Puerto Rican Vireo

The Puerto Rican Vireo (Vireo latimeri) is a petite endemic songbird reaching just 12 cm (4.7 inches) long. Nicknamed “bien-te-veo” (see-you-well) for its distinctive call, this gray-headed bird sports a white breast and yellow-hued belly.

• Common Name(s): Puerto Rican Vireo, Bien-Te-Veo
• Family: Vireonidae
• Body Dimensions: 12 cm
• Male Plumage Color(s): Gray Head, White Breast, Yellow Belly
• Female Plumage Color(s): Gray Head, White Breast, Yellow Belly
• Habitat: Forests
• Diet: Insects, Fruits
• Native Countries: Puerto Rico
• Continent(s): North America
• Taxonomy Classification Year: 1866
• Taxonomist(s): Spencer Fullerton Baird

Puerto Rican Vireo Fun Facts

• Weighing 11-12 grams, the Puerto Rican Vireo favors forested areas across Puerto Rico^[1], where it forages among branches for insects and spiders to fuel its energetic metabolism.
• The Puerto Rican Vireo supplements its diet with small lizards and berries by expertly snatching up grasshoppers, caterpillars, cicadas, beetles, and other small prey.
• Usually quiet, both sexes sing a varied, sweet warbling song. This species builds intricate hanging nests but suffers from brood parasitism by the invasive Shiny Cowbird, which hijacks vireo nests to lay its eggs.
• Population declines in the 1980s stemming from Shiny Cowbird nest intrusions provoked conservation concerns for the Puerto Rican Vireo.
• However, implementing control programs for the offending cowbird allowed vireo numbers to rebound in targeted forests like Guánica State Park.
• Still considered Near Threatened by the IUCN Red List though, habitat protection remains vital for this tiny endemic bird’s survival.
• Ensuring mature broadleaf forests with sufficient insects and fruit—the Puerto Rican Vireo’s ideal nesting and feeding grounds – is paramount.

While small, widely foraging birds may seem commonplace, focusing conservation efforts on vulnerable endemic species like the “see-you-well” Puerto Rican Vireo underscores Puerto Rico’s precious biodiversity as a Caribbean Island.

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