Hooded Oriole

Hooded Oriole, adult male

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Hooded Oriole, female

Hooded Oriole, male, 1st spring

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1. Description
2. Sound
3. Conservation Status
4. Other Names
5. Cool Facts
6. Full detailed species account

Named for the orange hood on the male, this slender oriole is at home in suburban areas of the southwestern United States. It originally nested in the trees of desert oases, but finds ornamental trees suitable.

Description

• Medium-sized oriole.
• Slender body.
• Long tail.
• Long, slightly decurved bill.
• Male bright orange with black bib, female drab yellow.

• Size: 18-20 cm (7-8 in)
• Weight: 24 g (0.85 ounces)

Sex Differences

Male colorful bright orange with black mask and throat, female drab and unpatterned. Similar in size.

Sound

Song a rapid, choppy series of warbles. Call note a sharp, nasal "wheet." Also a rolling, dry chatter.

Conservation Status

Expanding range in some areas, perhaps as a result of using ornamental trees in urban areas. Lower Rio Grande population decreased markedly in 20th century, perhaps because of cowbird nest parasitism.

Other Names

Oriole masqué (French)
Bolsero cuculado, Bolsero encapuchado, Calandria zapotera, Jaranjero (Spanish)

Cool Facts

• When the nest is suspended from palm leaves, the female pokes holes in the leaf from below and pushes the fibers through, effectively sewing the nest to the leaf.

Sources used to construct this page:

Pleasants, B. Y., and D. J. Albano. 2001. Hooded Oriole (Icterus cucullatus). In The Birds of North America, No. 568. (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.