Vireo

vir'e-o, an American family of singing birds. There are about fifty species, chiefly tropical. Half a score nest in the temperate parts of North America. The nests of the different species vary, but in general they hang from the slender forked twigs of low bushes and small trees, and are made of all sorts of shreds and fibers, grass, cotton, spider's web, bark, and tendrils. They are covered frequently with gray lichens to afford concealment. All vireos are small birds, scarcely, save the redeyed vireo, reaching six inches in length. As a family the vireos are gifted in song. They are modest gray and olive green birds, living on insects, for which they patiently explore the cracks, crannies, buds, and leaves of trees.