Icterus galbula
From high in a leafy tree, a Baltimore Oriole sings short bursts of rich, flute-like whistles: a few notes, a pause, then another try. Every male has his own pattern. Between songs come a dry, rattling chatter and a clear two-note whistle, hew-li. Listen for them from spring arrival in late April or May into midsummer.
Every sound the Baltimore Oriole makes
5 sounds to learn, 2 with a recording.
Song
Mid pitch · Phrase
A short, loud phrase of clear whistled notes, often in pairs, with a full, round, flute-like tone; one phrase lasts only a second or two. Each male has his own version, so there is no single tune to memorize. Females sing too, in shorter, simpler snatches.
From arrival in late April or May through midsummer, usually from the top of a tall tree; males sing to claim and defend a nesting territory.
Chatter
Mid pitch · Trill
A dry, staccato rattle, a quick run of harsh notes with a wooden, chattering sound. Both sexes give it when a rival or intruder comes close. Orchard Orioles chatter too, so wait for rich whistles nearby to clinch it.
Any time of day while orioles are around, most often near the nest.
Hew-li Whistle
Mid pitch · Single note
A clear, two-note whistle, hew-li, given by both males and females. The same notes are often woven into the song, so a lone hew-li from the treetops is a good hint that an oriole is nearby even when it is not singing.
“hew-li”
Spring and summer.
Chuck Alarm
Mid pitch · Repeated
A sharp, repeated chuck, chuck, given when something threatening comes near the nest.
“chuck”
Breeding season, near the nest.
Nestling Begging
High pitch · Repeated
A steady, insistent chorus of high, whiny notes from inside the hanging nest, loudest when a parent arrives with food. It often gives away a nest you never noticed, swaying at the tip of a high branch.
Late spring and early summer, from the nest and then from fledglings trailing their parents.
What to listen for
- Look high: the song nearly always comes from the top of a tall leafy tree, often a shade tree along a street, park or river.
- Rich whistles that stop after a phrase or two, then start again, suggest an oriole; a steady string of ten or so whistles is more likely a robin.
- A dry chatter from the canopy in May or June usually means an oriole defending its nest area.
- Neighboring males sing different songs, so learn the tone, not the tune.
- Singing fades in July, and many orioles head south over July and August.
Birds that sound like the Baltimore Oriole
By ear: Robins keep going: a longer, steadier string of whistles, cheerily cheer-up, with a slightly husky edge. The oriole's phrases are shorter and fuller, and they stop sooner.
By ear: Orchard Oriole's song runs about three to four seconds: longer, faster, a little higher and more jumbled, with harsh chattering notes mixed in among the whistles.
By ear: The grosbeak's song is a long, sweet, robin-like run of rising and falling notes, more continuous than an oriole's. Its call, a squeaky chink like a sneaker on a gym floor, gives it away fast.
Bullock's Oriole
By ear: In the Great Plains, where the two meet and interbreed, Bullock's mixes rattles and gruff notes into its whistles, so the song comes out scratchier.
When and where you'll hear it
When
Most vocal from May to July, at dawn and during the day.
- Dawn
- Daytime
Where
Summers across the East and Midwest, from the Great Plains to the Atlantic and south to about northern Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi; along the Gulf Coast and in Florida it is mainly a spring and fall migrant. Arrives in late April and May and heads south from July to September; a few spend the winter in Florida and the Southeast, often at feeders.
- Great Plains
- Baltimore and Bullock's Orioles overlap and hybridize here, so songs with extra rattles or scratchy notes are not unusual.
- Yards
- Woods
- Cities
Practice the Baltimore Oriole in the app
Practice the Baltimore Oriole’s song until you can name it without looking. Wings & Whistles plays it in 2 interactive listening lessons, mixed with the birds you’ll hear around it.
How to recognize the Baltimore Oriole by sight
A brightly colored songbird of the East. Adult males are flame-orange with a black head and back, and white wing bars; females are yellow-orange with gray-brown wings and two white wing bars. Orioles are often heard before seen, singing from the treetops, and are known for weaving hanging basket nests.
Similar-looking species (1)
- Bullock's Oriole: Bullock's Oriole (western North America) males have an orange face with a black eye line and throat patch (vs. Baltimore’s full black hood). Females Bullock's are also orange-ish but with a whitish belly and a distinct gray cheek contrasting an orange crown, whereas female Baltimore is more uniform yellow-orange with brownish back.
Baltimore Oriole sounds FAQ
When does the Baltimore Oriole sing?
The Baltimore Oriole is most vocal from May to July, mostly at dawn and during the day.