Black-headed oriole

Oriolus larvatus

Photo by Gerda van Schalkwyk (Flickr)

Common name:
black-headed oriole (en); papa-figos-de-cabeça-preta (pt); loriot masqué (fr); oropéndola enmascarada (es); maskenpirol (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Oriolidae

Range:
This species is found in sub-Saharan Africa, specially in East Africa, from Ethiopia down to South Africa, and also into Angola and northern Namibia in West Africa.

Size:
These birds are 23-27 cm long and weigh 60-70 g.

Habitat:
This species is found in most woodland and forest habitats within its range, especially dry forests and savannas. They are also found in mangroves, scrublands, along rivers and streams, pastures, plantations, arable land and also within urban areas.

Diet:
The black-headed oriole feeds on insects, fruits, berries, seeds and nectar. They are known to take bees, caterpillars, dragonflies, damselflies and termite alates, figs, olives, bone-apples, the seeds of Brachychiton and the nectar of Aloe, Greyvillea and Erythrina latissima.

Breeding:
These birds breed in September-February. The nest is a deep cup made of lichen, moss, tendrils and grass woven together, placed between the stems of a fork in a horizontal branchof a tree, 6-9 m above ground. The female lays 2-3 pinkish eggs with brown and grey spots, which are incubated for 14-16 days. The chicks fledge 14-18 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This black-headed oriole has a very large breeding range and is common to fairly common, although scarce in south-east Ethiopia. This population is suspected to be expanding its range with urban development, as they readily adapt to urban environments.

Eurasian golden oriole

Oriolus oriolus

Photo by Abdul  Al-Sirhan (Kuwait Bird Sightings)

Common name:

Eurasian golden oriole (en); papa-figos (pt); loriot d'Europe (fr); oropéndola europea (es); pirol (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Oriolidae

Range:

This species is found throughout most of continental Europe, from Portugal and Spain to southern Sweden, and east into Russia and Turkey and into Asia all the way to Afghanistan, western China and Mongolia. They migrate south to winter in sub-Saharan Africa, from Cameroon to Kenya and south to South Africa.

Size:

These birds are 20-24 cm long and have a wingspan of 44-47 cm. They weigh 42-72 g.

Habitat:

Eurasian golden orioles breed in a wide range of forested habitats, including open broadleaved forests and plantations, copses, riverine forest, orchards, large gardens, as well as mixed or coniferous forests. They winter in semi-arid to humid woodland, tall forests, riverine forest, woodland-savanna mosaic and savanna.

Diet:

They are omnivorous, feeding on insects, namely bees, butterflies and caterpillars, fruits and berries, and seeds high up in the tree canopy. Occasionally, they also take mice and other small mammals.

Breeding:

Eurasian golden orioles breed in April-July. The female builds the nest, a shallow cup made of plant fibres and stems, placed in a fork in a tree. There she lays 3-4 white eggs with dark speckles, which she mostly incubated alone for 15-18 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 14-20 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least concern)

This species has an extremely large breeding range and a global population estimated at 20-100 million individuals. This population is suspected to be stable overall, although in Europe, trends in the last 3 decades suggest a moderate increase.