Green Oriole
Oriolus flavocinctus
Medium-sized songbird with a long red bill and red eye. Olive-green above, with greenish breast blending into yellow belly. Juvenile and immature also yellowish on the belly, unlike Olive-backed Oriole or Australasian Figbird. Forages in forested areas, gardens, and parks in northern Australia, usually singly or in pairs, singing frequently, a rich, throaty “yok-yok-yoddle.”
Taxonomy
Alternate names for the green oriole include the Australian yellow oriole, yellow oriole and yellow-bellied oriole.<p>Six subspecies are recognised:
- Scientific name
- Oriolus flavocinctus
- Authority
- (King, PP, 1826)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Oriolidae
- Genus
- Oriolus
Range and habitat
They are often difficult to locate, as their yellow-green plumage blends with the foliage and only their deep bubbling musical calls can be heard. They are nevertheless common in suitable habitat: rainforests, mangroves, thickets along watercourses, swamps, and lush gardens.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Breeding takes place during the wet season (October to March). A neat, deep cup is constructed from strips of bark and vines, lined with rootlets, and slung between leafy branches, usually 5-15 m up. They typically lay two eggs.<p>Green orioles forage slowly and methodically through the middle and upper strata of dense forests, taking fruit in the main. Typically alone or in pairs, they sometimes form small flocks in the nonbreeding season.
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Black-goggled Tanager
Trichothraupis melanops
Restless tanager found in the undergrowth of forests and second growth; usually accompanies mixed-species flocks. Males have a black mask and a yellow crown stripe. Males also have an olive-gray head and back and are buff below with dark wings and tail. Females lack the yellow crown and mask and are generally more cinnamon below.
Fiji Streaked Fantail
Rhipidura layardi
Small, with a long, often fanned tail. Warm brown overall with a short white eyebrow and variably streaked white underparts; birds on Taveuni have minimal streaking compared to birds elsewhere in Fiji. Found in forest and forest edge, avoiding open areas. Similar to Gray Fantail, but note brown back and heavily marked chest. Song is a short, high-pitched squeaking up-and-down series. Calls include strident “chek!” and nasal scolding calls.
Vanuatu Petrel
Pterodroma occulta
Rare and difficult to identify, this petrel is known to breed solely on the steep vegetated slopes of Vanua Lava, in northern Vanuatu. Most frequently reported in the seas surrounding Vanuatu, it likely ranges much further afield in the southwest Pacific; unfortunately, its similarity to other petrel species and the sparse coverage of that region make determining this difficult. Note neat black cap, bright white hindcollar, and black “M” across the uppersides of the wings. Extremely similar to White-necked Petrel; Vanuatu averages slightly smaller and smaller-billed overall, and with minimal amounts of white on the undersides of the primaries compared to White-necked. However, some Vanuatus can show significant white “tongues” in the primary undersides, and as such, identification remains extremely difficult away from the species’ core range in northern Vanuatu. Juan Fernandez Petrel can also be very similar, but lacks the bright white hindcollar and has even more extensive white tongues on the primary undersides. Typically solitary at sea, but can congregate in feeding flocks, sometimes with other species.
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