IBRC #34-B-10

Idaho Bird Records Committee
Rarities Report Form

Species: Baltimore Oriole

Reporter: Jay Carlisle
989 W. Sherwood
Boise, ID 83706
jaycarlisle@boisestate.edu

Other Observers: Heidi Ware & Jack Oar (Connie Oar, Darren Clark, Harry Krueger, and RL Rowland on other days)

Date Report Prepared:  6-7-10

Date Sighting Occurred:  6-3-10

Locality of Observation: 24 mi N of Howe, Butte County

Habitat: feeders in yard of Oar residence; some trees in an otherwise sagebrush-dominated landscape

Conditions:  mostly clear; the bird came to a feeder about 10’ out the window

Did you take notes?  No

Did you consult a field guide or other reference work?  yes

What guide(s) or reference(s) did you consult? National Geographic

Description:  An oriole with a blackish head and back, an orange underside, and black wings with an orange upper wing (‘shoulder’) bar and a lower white wing bar.  The black areas were a little dingy, the belly had a pale tone to it, and we could see some brownish (retained juvenile) feathers on the wing coverts – thus, this was second-calendar-year (1-yr-old) male.

Behavior:  feeding on a hummingbird feeder (with huge #s of other birds present, including several Bullock’s Orioles)

How and when did you positively identify the bird, and what clinched the identification for you?  The all-dark head combined with the orange shoulder bar sealed the deal.

How did you eliminate similar species, and what were they?  Bullock’s Oriole male has an extensive white wing patch and much more orange on the face.

Experience with this species (and similar species): I have seen 100s of both oriole species in many states but this is my first Baltimore in Idaho.

General birding experience: extensive; 14+ years in US and Latin America

Were photo(s), video, and/or audio obtained by you? (If yes, please include or attach)    Yes, see attached (taken by me using the Oar’s camera)

These photos were taken by Jay Carlisle on 3 June 2010.

These photos were taken by Darren Clark on 2 June 2010.  They were cropped by the webmaster but no other editing was performed.  Click photos to view original files.