Dark-throated Oriole (Oriolus xanthomas)

 Size: About that of the Myna.

Field Characters:

Dark-throated Oriole is a species of family Oriolidae. The brilliant golden-yellow bird has a jet-black head, throat, and upper breast. It has black in wings and tail, as sexes alike. It is found singly or in pairs, arboreal, in wooded country.

Distribution:

The whole of the Indian empire expected the arid portions west of a line from Kathiawar through Mount Aboo to the Sutlej Kiver. In the Himalayas, the bird can be found up to about 4,000 ft. Three races are recognized for differences in size and details of coloration, viz., the largest northern xanthornus, the intermediate peninsular maderaspatanus, and the smallest Ceylonese ceylonensis. It is resident over the greater part of its range but also moves about locally to some extent.

Habits:

This oriole, like the last, is a bird of well-wooded country and groves of large trees, often in the neighborhood of human habitations. It has a variety of loud melodious calls which in general are very like those of the Indian Oriole. A harsh monosyllabic note commonly uttered is mistaken for one of the Tree-Pie's. Otherwise, there is no appreciable difference between the habits of the two species. The natural habitat of this oriole is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.

Nesting:

The principal months in India are from April to July, but in Ceylon, it apparently breeds from October to May. The structure and size of the nest do not differ from those of the Indian Oriole, but the eggs are somewhat smaller, pinker, and less glossy. Orioles of both species, along with such other mild-mannered birds as doves and babblers, often build in the same tree as holds a nest of the Black Drongo.

That this is by design rather than accident can scarcely be doubted considering how frequent the occurrence is. It is certain also that the birds must thereby enjoy a degree of protection against marauders like crows and tree-pies. King Crow will tolerate the proximity of his harmless dependents with complacence, but a crow has only to show himself in the precincts of the nest tree to be furiously set upon and beaten off by the valiant kotwal and his wife.

Other Names

The other names of Dark-throated oriole are black-throated oriole, black-headed oriole, and Malaysian oriole. Also, the black-headed oriole shouldn’t be confused with the species of a similar name, (Oriolus larvatus).