South American Yellow Oriole
Encyclopedia
The Yellow Oriole, Icterus nigrogularis, is a passerine
bird
in the family Icteridae. It should not be confused with the Australasian Yellow Oriole
, Oriolus flavocinctus, which is an Old World
oriole
. In Trinidad and Tobago
, it is also called the 'Plantain' and 'Small Corn Bird', and in Venezuela it is known as "Gonzalito".
Yellow Oriole breeds in northern South America
in Colombia
, Venezuela
, Trinidad
, the Guianas
and parts of northern Brazil
, (northern Roraima
state, and eastern Amapá
). The Yellow Oriole is a bird of open woodland, scrub and gardens. Its nest is a 40 cm long hanging basket, suspended from the end of a branch. The normal clutch is three pale green or grey egg
s.
This is a 20-21 cm long, 38 g weight bird, with mainly yellow plumage
, as its name suggests. The adult male has a black eye mask, thin black throat line, black tail and black wings with a white wing bar and some white feather edging.
The female is similar but slightly duller, and the juvenile bird has an olive-tinged yellow back, and lacks black on the face.
There are four subspecies of Yellow Oriole, of which three are restricted to islands. They differ from the widespread nominate race of the mainland in body and bill size, and minor plumage details.
This species eats mainly large insect
s, but will also take nectar and some fruit
.
The song of the Yellow Oriole is a pleasant melodious fluting, with some buzzing. The calls include a cat-like whine, and chattering noises.
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
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
in the family Icteridae. It should not be confused with the Australasian 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....
, Oriolus flavocinctus, which is an Old World
Old World
The Old World consists of those parts of the world known to classical antiquity and the European Middle Ages. It is used in the context of, and contrast with, the "New World" ....
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...
. In Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
, it is also called the 'Plantain' and 'Small Corn Bird', and in Venezuela it is known as "Gonzalito".
Yellow Oriole breeds in northern South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
in Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
, Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
, the Guianas
Guyanas
Guyana is a country in South America.Guyana, Guayana, or Guiana may also refer to:*Guayana Esequiba, the territory of Guyana claimed by Venezuela*Guayana Region, an administrative region of Venezuela...
and parts of northern Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, (northern Roraima
Roraima
Roraima is the northernmost and least populated state of Brazil, located in the Amazon region. It borders the states of Amazonas and Pará, as well as the nations of Venezuela and Guyana. The population is 400,000 and the capital is Boa Vista...
state, and eastern Amapá
Amapá
Amapá is one of the states of Brazil, located in the extreme north, bordering French Guiana and Suriname to the north. To the east is the Atlantic Ocean, and to the south and west is the Brazilian state of Pará. Perhaps one of the main features of the state is the River Oiapoque, as it was once...
). The Yellow Oriole is a bird of open woodland, scrub and gardens. Its nest is a 40 cm long hanging basket, suspended from the end of a branch. The normal clutch is three pale green or grey egg
Egg (biology)
An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...
s.
This is a 20-21 cm long, 38 g weight bird, with mainly yellow plumage
Feather
Feathers are one of the epidermal growths that form the distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on birds and some non-avian theropod dinosaurs. They are considered the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates, and indeed a premier example of a complex evolutionary novelty. They...
, as its name suggests. The adult male has a black eye mask, thin black throat line, black tail and black wings with a white wing bar and some white feather edging.
The female is similar but slightly duller, and the juvenile bird has an olive-tinged yellow back, and lacks black on the face.
There are four subspecies of Yellow Oriole, of which three are restricted to islands. They differ from the widespread nominate race of the mainland in body and bill size, and minor plumage details.
This species eats mainly large insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s, but will also take nectar and some fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
.
The song of the Yellow Oriole is a pleasant melodious fluting, with some buzzing. The calls include a cat-like whine, and chattering noises.
External links
- Stamps (for Netherlands AntillesNetherlands AntillesThe Netherlands Antilles , also referred to informally as the Dutch Antilles, was an autonomous Caribbean country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, consisting of two groups of islands in the Lesser Antilles: Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao , in Leeward Antilles just off the Venezuelan coast; and Sint...
, Trinidad and TobagoTrinidad and TobagoTrinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
) with RangeMap - "Yellow Oriole" photo galley VIREO Photo-High Res