Orioles
Icteridae
The genus Icterus, New World orioles, is a group of birds in the Icteridae family. The name "oriole" was first recorded (in the Latin form oriolus) by Albertus Magnus in about 1250, and was stated by him to be onomatopoeic, from the song of the European Golden Oriole.
They are not related to the Old World orioles which are in the family Oriolidae, but are superficially strikingly similar in size, diet, behaviour and their yellow-and-black plumage, a good example of convergent evolution, and almost inevitably took the same vernacular name.
The genus name Icterus is from the Greek word for yellow and is also associated with jaundice.
Description:
The males are typically black and yellow or orange, with white markings; the plumage of females and immature birds is duller. These birds go through one moult in a year.
They are generally slender with long tails and a pointed bill.
Diet Feeding:
They mainly eat insects, often also nectar and fruit.
Several species are easy to attract to birdtables by the provision of cut oranges and grape jelly, both are favored by orioles.
Breeding / Nesting:
The nest is a woven pouch. The species nesting in areas with cold winters (including most of the United States) are strongly migratory, while subtropical and tropical species are more sedentary.
The following is a full species list:
- Altamira Oriole, Icterus gularis
- Audubon's Oriole, Icterus graduacauda
- Baltimore Oriole, Icterus galbula
- Bar-winged Oriole, Icterus maculialatus
- Black-backed Oriole, Icterus abeillei
- Black-cowled Oriole, Icterus prosthemelas
- Black-vented Oriole, Icterus wagleri
- Bullock's Oriole, Icterus bullockii
- Epaulet Oriole, Icterus cayanensis
- Greater Antillean Oriole, Icterus dominicensis
- Hooded Oriole, Icterus cucullatus
- Jamaican Oriole, Icterus leucopteryx
- Martinique Oriole, Icterus bonana
- Montserrat Oriole, Icterus oberi
- Moriche Oriole, Icterus chrysocephalus
- Yellow-backed Oriole, Icterus chrysater
- Orange Oriole, Icterus auratus
- Orange-crowned Oriole, Icterus auricapillus
- Orchard Oriole, Icterus spurius
- St. Lucia Oriole, Icterus laudabilis
- Scott's Oriole, Icterus parisorum
- Yellow Oriole, Icterus nigrogularis
- Spot-breasted Oriole, Icterus pectoralis
- Streak-backed Oriole, Icterus pustulatus
- Troupial, Icterus icterus
- White-edged Oriole, Icterus graceannae
- Yellow-tailed Oriole, Icterus mesomelas
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