Black-hooded oriole

Last updated

Black-hooded oriole
Black-hooded oriole (Oriolus xanthornus) by Shantanu Kuveskar.jpg
Calls
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Oriolidae
Genus: Oriolus
Species:
O. xanthornus
Binomial name
Oriolus xanthornus
Synonyms
  • Coracias xanthornusLinnaeus, 1758
  • Oriolus melanocephalusLinnaeus, 1766
  • Sturnus luteolusLinnaeus, 1758

The black-hooded oriole (Oriolus xanthornus) 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.

Contents

It is a bird of open woodland and cultivation. The nest is built in a tree, and contains two eggs. Its food is insects and fruit, especially figs, found in the tree canopies where they spend much of their time.

Taxonomy and systematics

The black-hooded oriole was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Coracias xanthornus. [2] Linnaeus was confused by the similar appearance of the unrelated New World orioles and the Old World orioles. In his entry for Coracias xanthornus he cited descriptions of birds occurring in Jamaica by Mark Catesby and Patrick Browne as well as an illustration by George Edwards of a bird occurring in Bengal. [3] [4] [5] Linnaeus specified the habitat as "America" but Bengal is now the recognised type location. [6] Also in the 10th edition Linnaeus listed Sturnus luteolus among the starlings and cited another illustration by Edwards. [7] [8] He renamed this species as Oriolus melanocephalus in the 12th edition of 1766. [9] All three binomial names are now believed to refer to the black-hooded oriole. [10]

The current genus Oriolus was erected by Linnaeus in 1766 in the twelfth edition of his Systema Naturae . [9] The name is from Medieval Latin oryolus for the Eurasian golden oriole which in turn comes from the Latin word aureolus for "golden". The specific epithet xanthornus is from the Ancient Greek xanthos "yellow" and ornis "bird". [11]

Alternate names for the black-hooded oriole include the Asian black-headed oriole, black-headed oriole, Indian black-headed oriole and Oriental black-headed oriole.

Subspecies

Five subspecies are recognized: [12]

Description

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. Orioles can be shy, and even the male may be difficult to see in the dappled yellow and green leaves of the canopy.

The black-hooded oriole's flight is somewhat like a thrush, strong and direct with some shallow dips over longer distances.

Oriolus xanthornus in flight at Nijgadh, Nepal Black-hooded Oriole cropped.jpg
Oriolus xanthornus in flight at Nijgadh, Nepal

While foraging the species uses foliage-gleening, wood-gleening, or sallying methods. [13]

Relationship to humans

The black-hooded oriole lives in common contact with humans in rural and urban India.

A folk tale from Bengal has it that an unfortunate girl of a merchant family was abused and tortured by her mother-in-law. Troubled by various incidents she smeared herself with turmeric paste and covered herself with a sooty earthen pot and killed herself. A goddess resurrected her as a black hooded oriole and a Bengali name for the bird is "benebou" or merchant's wife while another name is "haldi pakhi" or turmeric bird. [14]

Related Research Articles

<i>Quiscalus</i> Genus of birds

The avian genus Quiscalus contains seven of the 11 species of grackles, gregarious passerine birds in the icterid family. They are native to North and South America.

<i>Phoenicopterus</i> Genus of birds

Phoenicopterus is a genus of birds in the flamingo family Phoenicopteridae.

<i>Buceros</i> Genus of birds

Buceros is a genus of large Asian hornbills.

<i>Sterna</i> Genus of birds

Sterna is a genus of terns in the bird family Laridae. The genus used to encompass most "white" terns indiscriminately, but mtDNA sequence comparisons have recently determined that this arrangement is paraphyletic. It is now restricted to the typical medium-sized white terns occurring near-globally in coastal regions.

<i>Coracias</i> Genus of birds

Coracias is a genus of the rollers, an Old World family of near passerine birds related to the kingfishers and bee-eaters. They share the colourful appearance of those groups, blues and browns predominating. The two outer front toes are connected, but not the inner one.

<i>Tetrao</i> Genus of birds

Tetrao is a genus of birds in the grouse subfamily known as capercaillies. They are some of the largest living grouse. Feathers from the bird were used to create the characteristic hat of the bersaglieri, an Italian ace infantry formation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape bunting</span> Species of bird

The Cape bunting is a passerine bird in the bunting family Emberizidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Streamertail</span> Genus of birds

The streamertails are hummingbirds in the genus Trochilus, that are endemic to Jamaica. It is the type genus of the family Trochilidae. Today most authorities consider the two taxa in this genus as separate species, but some continue to treat them as conspecific, in which case scitulus is a subspecies of T. polytmus. A wide range of common names apply to this combined species, including green-and-black streamertail, Jamaican streamertail or simply streamertail. The name streamertail is a reference to the greatly elongated rectrices of the males.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellow-billed amazon</span> Species of bird

The yellow-billed amazon, also called the yellow-billed parrot or Jamaican amazon, is a species of parrot in the family Psittacidae. It is a predominantly green parrot with a short tail and pink throat and neck. It is endemic to Jamaica, where its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical mangrove forests, subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, plantations, and rural gardens. It is threatened by habitat loss and illegal trapping of wild birds for the pet trade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Madagascar pygmy kingfisher</span> Species of bird

The Madagascar pygmy kingfisher is a species of bird in the family Alcedinidae. It is endemic to Madagascar and found in western dry deciduous forests.

<i>Dolichoderus bidens</i> Species of ant

Dolichoderus bidens is a species of ant in the genus Dolichoderus. Described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae, the species is endemic to Brazil, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago.

<i>Dermestes murinus</i> Species of beetle

Dermestes murinus is a species of beetle in family Dermestidae. It is found in the Palearctic

<i>Apion frumentarium</i> Species of beetle

Apion frumentarium is a species of beetle in family Brentidae. It is found in the Palearctic.

<i>Phaedon armoraciae</i> Species of beetle

Phaedon armoraciae is a species of beetle in family Chrysomelidae. It is found in the Palearctic.

<i>Lema cyanella</i> Species of beetle

Lema cyanella is a species of beetle in family Chrysomelidae found in the Palearctic.

<i>Plateumaris sericea</i> Species of beetle

Plateumaris sericea is a species of beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in the Palearctic.

<i>Phyllotreta nemorum</i> Species of beetle

Phyllotreta nemorum, the turnip flea beetle or yellow-striped flea beetle is a species of beetle in family Chrysomelidae. The beetle is 2.4-3.5 mm long and black with sinuate yellow bands running down its elytra. It is found in the Palearctic.

<i>Boltenia ovifera</i> Species of sea squirt

Boltenia ovifera is a species of ascidian tunicates in the family Pyuridae. It is found in the Arctic to the South of Cape Cod.

<i>Panorpa germanica</i> Species of insect

Panorpa germanica, also known by its common name German scorpionfly, is a species from the genus Panorpa.

References

  1. ↑ BirdLife International (2018). "Oriolus xanthornus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2018: e.T22706437A130378031. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22706437A130378031.en . Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. ↑ Linnaeus, Carl (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis (in Latin). Vol. 1 (10th ed.). Holmiae:Laurentii Salvii. p. 108.
  3. ↑ Catesby, Mark (1729–1732). The Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands. Vol. 2 (Appendix). London: W. Innys and R. Manby. p. 5, Plate 5.
  4. ↑ Browne, Patrick (1756). The Civil and Natural History of Jamaica. London: Printed for the author, and sold by T. Osborne and J. Shipton. p. 477.
  5. ↑ Edwards, George (1747). A Natural History of Uncommon Birds. Vol. Part II. London: Printed for the author, at the College of Physicians. p. 77, Plate 77.
  6. ↑ Mayr, Ernst; Greenway, James C. Jr, eds. (1962). Check-list of Birds of the World. Vol. 15. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 133.
  7. ↑ Linnaeus, Carl (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis (in Latin). Vol. 1 (10th ed.). Holmiae:Laurentii Salvii. p. 167.
  8. ↑ Edwards, George (1751). A Natural History of Uncommon Birds. Vol. Part IV. London: Printed for the author, at the College of Physicians. p. 186, Plate 186.
  9. 1 2 Linnaeus, Carl (1766). Systema naturae : per regna tria natura, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis (in Latin). Vol. 1, Part 1 (12th ed.). Holmiae (Stockholm): Laurentii Salvii. p. 160.
  10. ↑ Hellmayr, C.E. (1919). "Miscellanea Ornithologica IV". Verhandlungen der Ornithologischen Gesellschaft in Bayern (in German). 14: 126–133 [132].
  11. ↑ Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. pp.  284, 410. ISBN   978-1-4081-2501-4.
  12. ↑ Gill, Frank; Donsker, David, eds. (2017). "Orioles, drongos & fantails". World Bird List Version 7.3. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 20 November 2017.
  13. ↑ Gokula, V.; Vijayan, L. (2000). "Foraging pattern of birds during the breeding season in thorn forest of Mudumalai wildlife sanctuary, Tamil Nadu, Southern India". Tropical Ecology. 41 (2): 195–208.
  14. ↑ Mitra, Sarat Chandra (1928). "Studies in Bird-Myths, No. XXII.-on a Second Aetiological Myth About the Indian Black-Headed Oriole". Quarterly Journal of the Mythic Society. 19 (1): 67–68.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.