Olive-backed Oriole
Encyclopedia
The Olive-backed Oriole (Oriolus sagittatus) is a very common medium-sized passerine
bird native to northern and eastern Australia
and New Guinea
. The most wide-ranging of the Australasian oriole
s, it is noisy and conspicuous. Not bright in colour, it is olive-backed with small dark streaks, with a light chest having black streaks. Females have cinnamon-edged wings and both sexes have reddish bills and eyes.
Where the Yellow Oriole
specialises in damp, thickly vegetated habitats in the tropical far north, the Olive-backed Oriole is more versatile, preferring more open woodland environments, and tolerating drier climates (but not desert). Common to very common in the north, Olive-backed Orioles are less frequently seen in the south, but nevertheless reach as far as south-eastern South Australia
. Their range is from the very north of Western Australia
across the east and south coasts to Victoria
and the corner of South Australia
. Most birds breed during the tropical wet season, but some migrate
south to breed in the southern summer.
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird native to northern and eastern Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
. The most wide-ranging of the Australasian oriole
Oriole
Orioles are colourful Old World passerine birds in the genus Oriolus, the namesake of the corvoidean family Oriolidae. They are not related to the New World orioles, which are icterids and, belonging to the superfamily Passeroidea songbirds, are quite unrelated to the true orioles.The orioles are...
s, it is noisy and conspicuous. Not bright in colour, it is olive-backed with small dark streaks, with a light chest having black streaks. Females have cinnamon-edged wings and both sexes have reddish bills and eyes.
Where the Yellow Oriole
Australasian Yellow Oriole
The Yellow Oriole or Green Oriole, is an inconspicuous inhabitant of lush tropical vegetation throughout New Guinea and northern Australia, including Cape York Peninsula, the Top End and the Kimberley....
specialises in damp, thickly vegetated habitats in the tropical far north, the Olive-backed Oriole is more versatile, preferring more open woodland environments, and tolerating drier climates (but not desert). Common to very common in the north, Olive-backed Orioles are less frequently seen in the south, but nevertheless reach as far as south-eastern South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
. Their range is from the very north of Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
across the east and south coasts to Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
and the corner of South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
. Most birds breed during the tropical wet season, but some migrate
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
south to breed in the southern summer.