northeast-flora-and-fauna

Here's yet another Baltimore Oriole I met last spring. Given the different location, I can be reasonably confident that this is a different Baltimore Oriole than the ones that were kicking around Duke Farms around this time (to say nothing of the Orchard Oriole there).  Though they're frequently on-the-move birds, they usually photograph well due to their contrasting plumage. Here's a video of Baltimore Orioles over a summer . May 10, 2023 at Delaware Raritan Canal Photo 282315900, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)  

Though I see their Baltimore Oriole cousins more often, their smaller cousins the Orchard Orioles [1] also live and breed in New Jersey (at least during the warm-weather months). Besides being smaller, they can also be distinguished by: Baltimore Oriole males are bright orange and black, while Orchard Oriole males are a rich chestnut color and black. Baltimore Oriole females have a yellow/orange breast/belly, while Orchard Oriole females shouldn't show any orange. This particular Orchard Oriole has a slightly different look though. Note the black patch on the throat? This is an indicator that this isn't a female Orchard Oriole but instead an immature male Orchard Oriole [2]. I don't see these birds very often, probably partly because they don't typically stay in their breeding area very long. They generally arrive here late in the spring and leave in the middle of summer, so they're in New Jersey for less time than the average bird. May 9, 2023 at Duke Farms Photo...