Hooded Oriole

Wherever people plant fan palms in the Southwest, Hooded Orioles follow — the female stitches her nest to the underside of a palm frond with plant-fiber thread. Slim, long-tailed, and saffron-and-black, it's the neighborhood oriole of Phoenix, Tucson, Los Angeles, and increasingly the whole Sunbelt.

Range

Breeds from southern California and the Southwest through Texas into Mexico. Most winter in Mexico, but a growing number overwinter at feeders in Southern California and southern Arizona.

Migration timing

The earliest oriole in the US: back in Southern California and Arizona gardens by early March, occasionally late February. Departs by late September, though hummingbird-feeder regulars increasingly linger through winter in SoCal.

How to identify one

• Male: saffron-orange with a black face and bib — orange crown (no black hood, despite the name)
• Female: slender and yellow-olive with a longer, more curved bill than other orioles
• Long, graduated tail, often flipped and fanned

At the feeder

The most nectar-loving US oriole — Hooded Orioles routinely dominate hummingbird feeders, so offer an oriole feeder with bigger perches and 6:1 mix to keep the peace. If you have a fan palm, you may already have a nest overhead.

Where to find the Hooded Oriole

FeederDates › Orioles › Species › Hooded Oriole