Black-hooded Oriole
Oriolus xanthornus
The Black-hooded Oriole (Oriolus xanthornus) is a common old world oriol found in 12 countries, weighing about 56 g. The black-hooded oriole is a member of the oriole family of passerine birds and is a resident breeder in tropical southern Asia from India and Sri Lanka east to Indonesia.
About the Black-hooded Oriole
The black-hooded oriole is a member of the oriole family of passerine birds and is a resident breeder in tropical southern Asia from India and Sri Lanka east to Indonesia.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
The male is striking, with the typical oriole black and yellow colouration. The plumage is predominantly yellow, with a solid black hood, and black also in the wings and tail centre. The female black-hooded oriole is a drabber bird with greenish underparts, but still has the black hood. Young birds are like the female, but have dark streaking on the underparts, and their hood is not solidly black, especially on the throat. The black head of this species is an obvious distinction from the Indian golden oriole, which is a summer visitor to northern India.
What the Black-hooded Oriole sounds like
Where it lives
When to see it
The Black-hooded Oriole can be seen all year round, with peak activity in February. It is a resident species across most of its range.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify a Black-hooded Oriole?
- The male is striking, with the typical oriole black and yellow colouration. Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is a Black-hooded Oriole?
- The Black-hooded Oriole is a small sized bird weighing about 56 g.
- Where can you see a Black-hooded Oriole?
- The Black-hooded Oriole occurs in 12 countries, including India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Thailand and Nepal.
- What does a Black-hooded Oriole sound like?
- You can listen to 3 field recordings of the Black-hooded Oriole on this page, contributed to xeno-canto under open licences.
- What birds look similar to a Black-hooded Oriole?
- The Black-hooded Oriole is most easily confused with the Indian Golden Oriole, the Olive-backed Oriole and the Black-headed Oriole.
- Is the Black-hooded Oriole endangered?
- The Black-hooded Oriole is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the Black-hooded Oriole for real
BeakBrain drills you on photos and calls until you can greet this bird by name in the field. Free to play, on any device.
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