Good morning, Newdists.
It’s Caturday.
Diary Bird: Hooded Oriole — Icterus cucullatus
Declined sharply in southern Texas in recent decades, perhaps owing to cowbird parasitism. May be making a slight comeback in that area. Still fairly common farther west.
Open woods, shade trees, palms. Breeds in groves of trees (such as cottonwood, walnut, sycamore) along streams and in canyons, and in open woods in lowlands. Often common in suburbs and city parks. Especially favors palm trees, and will nest in isolated groups of palms even in cities.
In the hot lowlands of the Southwest, this slim oriole is often common in the trees along streams and in suburbs. It is especially likely to be seen around palms, frequently attaching its hanging nest to the underside of a palm frond. In yards and gardens it often visits hummingbird feeders to drink the sugar-water. The jumbled, musical song of the male sometimes includes imitations of other birds. LINK
Male Hooded Orioles have a striking orange hood, which has given the species its name. Distributed through the southwestern United States, most of Mexico, and south into Belize, this species frequents open woods, thickets, palms, and shade trees, including those in suburban yards. It feeds on insects, nectar, and fruit. Adult males are orange-crowned and black-throated, females olive green and yellow; both sexes have 2 white wing-bars. The quiet song and chatter of this species make it less conspicuous than many other orioles.
The nest is a woven structure composed of grass, palm, or yucca fibers and placed high in a tree. In California, nests are so commonly found in palms that one early common name for the race of Hooded Oriole occurring there was the Palm-leaf Oriole. Ornamental plantings of palms, especially those with fan-shaped leaves (such as Washingtonia and Sabal), were quickly adopted by this species from southern Texas to California and led to range expansion. Although fond of palms everywhere in its range, Hooded Orioles appear most strongly associated with palms in California, especially in suburban yards and streets. LINK
All you lovely Newdists already know the routine — get yourself a cuppa and something to nosh, look at some photos, and then join us in the cafe, please!
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All are welcome to join the fun, the silliness, the conversations. If you don’t know...just ask! Some things really do require a bit of explanation.
There will be a few surprises along the way, all good ones, we hope.
We are here to keep building the Daily Kos Community.
We post Mon-Sun at 10:30 a.m. Eastern.
Pie fights will be met with outrageous ridicule and insults. Trolls will be incinerated and served at the next group BBQ. As briquettes.
Orange
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The Floating Piers
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Svortuloft Lighthouse Iceland
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Orange glass mosaic
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Murrini cane
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Orange lichen
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Caterpillar
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New Day Cafe is an open thread.