Hooded Orioles are found in North America. March through mid-September Hooded Orioles are found from Southern Texas through central California. By the end of September they migrate south to Mexico (Garret and Dunn 1981).

Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Native )

occurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations

United States

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Breeding

Global Range: BREEDING: central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah, central Arizona, southern New Mexico, and western and southern Texas south to southern Baja California and southern Mexico. NON-BREEDING: from northern Mexico to southern Mexico.

Hooded Orioles are sexually dimorphic. The male has an orange-yellow coloring with a black face, tail, wings and back. The wings on the bird will have two white bars of feathers. While the female has the same two white bars on her wings, her coloring is an olive-green with a yellowish shade underneath. Both male and female are the same in size, ranging from 112-128 cm (7-8 in.) long. The bill of the Hooded Oriole has a slight down curve that comes to a sharp point, enabling them to feed off tubular flowers (Readers Digest 1990).

Length: 20 cm

Weight: 24 grams

• Terrestrial

The Hooded Oriole can be described as a neotropical migrant. These birds are typically found in riparian areas. Humans have planted many species of non-native trees. These trees have increased the numbers of nesting sites available for the orioles. As a result the orioles can also be found in some decidous and riparian woodlands and human habitations, often by ranches or towns. (Ahlborn, Readers Digest 1990).

Terrestrial Biomes: savanna or grassland ; chaparral ; scrub forest

Aquatic Biomes: rivers and streams

Comments: Riparian woodland, palm groves, mesquite, arid scrub, deciduous woodland, around human habitation, city parks, suburbs. BREEDING: Nest suspended from branches of trees, underside of palm leaves, or in Spanish moss or mistletoe clump.

Non-Migrant: Yes. At least some populations of this species do not make significant seasonal migrations. Juvenile dispersal is not considered a migration.

Locally Migrant: Yes. At least some populations of this species make local extended movements (generally less than 200 km) at particular times of the year (e.g., to breeding or wintering grounds, to hibernation sites).

Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make annual migrations of over 200 km.

U.S. breeding populations generally migratory; return to California and Texas in March, Arizona in April (Terres 1980).

The Hooded Oriole's diet consists mostly of fruit, nectar, and insects. This bird will forage in shrubs and trees to find the insects and fruit. The nectar can be extracted from such plants as agaves, aloes, hibiscus, lilies, and other tubular flowers. That is where their pointed bill becomes useful: it will pierce the base of the flower to obtain the nectar. By doing this it will not pollinate the flower (Baicich 1997, Terres 1980, Readers Digest 1990).

Comments: Eats mostly insects, also nectar; often probes flowers (Terres 1980).

Average lifespan

Status: wild: 72 months.

Breeding season for this Oriole starts from early April to early May. The male will flutter around the female singing soft melodies with his bill open and pointing upward; the female will respond to the male in the same manner.

The nests can be found in a tall tree, preferably in a fan palm. Other trees regularly used for nesting include cottonwoods, sycamores, live oaks, and eucalyptus. The nest is built 2 - 15 meters (6-45 feet) above ground to protect against any unwanted predators. These nests are penduline (hang from branches )and the nesting chamber is cup shaped about 10 cm (4 inches) in depth and about the same in width. They are suspended by twigs and woven with string, dry vegitation, and any other fiberous materials that can be found. The female is the main builder of these nests; it takes her 3-5 days to complete it.

Typically 3-5 eggs are laid in the nest. The incubation period for those eggs is about 12-14 days, and they incubated only by the female. Their eggs are white, pale yellow or pale blue. They are lightly spotted with a grayish brown coloring. The hatching of the eggs usually takes place mid to late summer. The young are tended to by both parents and will leave the nest about 14 days after being hatched (Baicich 1997, Ehrlich 1988, Readers Digest 1990, Terres 1980).

Average time to hatching: 13 days.

Average eggs per season: 4.

Clutch size 3-5 (usually 4). Sometimes 2-3 broods per year. Incubation 12-14 days, by female. Young tended by both parents, leave nest at about 14 days.

US Federal List: no special status

CITES: no special status

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: least concern

United States

Rounded National Status Rank: N5B - Secure

Rounded Global Status Rank: G5 - Secure

Hooded Orioles eat a significant number of insects which are considered agricultural pests.

Comments: Closely related to and probably a sister taxon of Spurius (AOU 1998).