The Most Commonly Seen Bird in Maine? It’s Not the Chickadee
The Black-Capped Chickadee may be our official State Bird, but it's not the most commonly-seen bird in Maine. That honor goes to the Red-Eyed Vireo.
It's easy to identify this common songbird. According to allaboutbirds.org, Red-eyed Vireos "are olive-green above and clean white below with a strong head pattern: a gray crown and white eyebrow stripe bordered above and below by blackish lines. The flanks and under the tail have a green-yellow wash. Adults have red eyes that appear dark from a distance; immatures have dark eyes."
You may also see many Goldfinch, Blue Jays, Morning Doves, and Robins around Maine, but according to the website gardensalive.com, the most commonly seen bird in the Pine Tree State is the Red-eyed Vireo. There's probably one in your backyard right now!
Here is the methodology according to the gardensalive.com article:
"We used the latest data from the North American Breeding Bird Survey to find out which bird was seen most often in each state in 2019. Then, we determined which states are best for birding based on the number of birds seen per capita in 2019. We also looked at fluctuations in the total number of individual birds sighted over the past 10 years to form a historical perspective on birding."
Interestingly, the red-eyed vireo was also the most commonly-seen bird in New Hampshire, Virginia, and Alaska. A really cool thing about these birds is that they REALLY like to SING. Some studies have shown that a red-eyed vireo will sing between 10,000 and 20,000 times a DAY. Just listen for their sweet 3-note call.
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