Bird guide · Icterus galbula
Baltimore Oriole
What the Baltimore oriole eats, where it lives, when it comes to feeders and how to recognise it – with sightings from every US state.
- Season
- Migrant; many leave in July and August.
- Size
- 7.8 in (20 cm)
- Eats
- oranges, grape jelly, sugar water
- Feeds
- oriole/nectar feeder, fruit feeder
- Most common
- Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin
Food
What do Baltimore orioles eat?
At feeders, Baltimore orioles take oranges, grape jelly, sugar water.
Sips at nectar feeders and orange halves; adults bring their young to good feeders.
Feeder that suits it
A hummingbird nectar feeder with one part sugar to four parts water.
Season
When can you see the Baltimore oriole?
Migrant; many leave in July and August.. Across the US, sightings start in April, peak in May and fade out in September.
Share of all bird sightings in the US that are Baltimore orioles, by month.
Identification
How to identify the Baltimore oriole
Male: Flaming orange and black.
Female: Brown above, tinged orange below, white wing bars, variable black on the head.
Size: 7.8 in (20 cm)
Easily confused with
- Bullock's Oriole – orange face, more white in the wing
On camera
Getting the Baltimore oriole on a feeder camera
You need a hummingbird feeder camera – hummingbirds never visit seed feeders. See feeder cameras compared for the nectar models.
Questions
Baltimore Oriole: questions
What do Baltimore orioles eat?
At feeders, oranges, grape jelly, sugar water.
Do Baltimore orioles migrate?
Migrant; many leave in July and August.. Across the US, sightings start in April, peak in May and fade out in September.
Where do Baltimore orioles live?
By share of all bird sightings, they are most common in Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, Kansas, Michigan. They are rare or absent in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho.
What does a female Baltimore oriole look like?
Brown above, tinged orange below, white wing bars, variable black on the head.