Bell's Vireo

I saw this bird about a week ago and I've been researching and trying to identify it ever since. At this point, my best guess is a Bell's Vireo (Vireo bellii). This photo was taken at sunset when there was lots of pinkish light so he color is not quite accurate. But, we looked at it through the binoculars so my description is based more on what we actually saw than how it looks in this photo.

As far as size goes it was slightly smaller than a Northern Cardinal but not quite as small as a Lesser Goldfinch. Upperparts were gray and underparts were light, almost white with a definite yellow wash on its belly and sides. Wings and it's rather longish tail were gray. Its head was light gray. The bill was dark and looked similar to a flycatcher's. It had a very faint light-colorerd eye-ring. Unfortunately, it was silent... some vocalization certainly would have helped with the identification. So, until someone tells me otherwise, I'm going to assume this is a Bell's Vireo.

Their preferred habit is forest undergrowth, streamside thickets, woodland edges, and brushy fields. They are insectivores eating mainly caterpillars, beetles, bees, wasps, and small spiders.

Bell's Vireos are grayer in the westernmost parts of its range and become progressively more yellow to the east.

Currently, the Bell's Vireo is rated as 'Near Threatened' because the population has been in decline since 1966. The primary threat is loss of habitat and cowbird parasitism. There is a subspecies found only in Southern California, the Least Bell's Vireo (Vireo bellii pusillus), which is endangered.

Bell's Vireos have not been observed drinking water so it is thought that they may obtain hydration through their food.

Bell's Vireo was named by John James Audubon for John Graham Bell, an American taxidermist, who accompanied him on a trip up the Missouri River in 1843.

A group of Bell's Vireos are collectively known as a 'peal' or a 'tintinnabulation' of vireos.