Altamira Oriole, Icterus gularis

Altamira Oriole, Icterus gularis flavescens.  Photograph taken in the greater Zihuatanejo area, Guerrero, March 2019. Photograph courtesy of Ron Woheau, Zihuatanejo. Identification courtesy of Dr. Dan Anderson, Davis, California.

Background and Identification

The Altamira Oriole, Icterus gularis, is member of the Icteriidae Family of Troupials and Allies which includes Grackles, New World Blackbirds, and Orioles. The flavescens subspecies is one of six subspecies of Altamira Oriole, five of which are found in Mexico. They are known in Mexico as Turpial de Altamira.

The Altamira Oriole is the largest in North America. The sexes are similar in appearance with slightly larger males. Both males and females have orange and yellow heads and a black mask. Their lores, or the area between their bill and eye, are also black in color. Their neck, nape, underparts, rump, and upper tail coverts are orange and yellow as well. The mantle and lower black back end sharply at the base of the nape. Their wings are black with orange median coverts, and white-based primaries, and the greater coverts are widely tipped in white creating a single bold white wing bar. Their tail is black except for a yellowish base and white shaft streaks. Their bill is thick and black with the lower basal portion of the mandible being a pale grayish blue. Their iris is brown, and their legs and feet are bluish-gray.

Habitat and Geographical Range

The Altamira Oriole reside in various habitats including dry woodlands, scattered groves of trees in open areas, openings within forests, arid scrub, and trees bordering bodies of water. They forage from the tops of the trees to near the ground primarily consuming ants, other insects, insect larvae, various orthopterans, and seasonal fruits. They are known to take food from bird feeders. They are monogamous and solitary nesters. The Altamira Oriole is poorly studied, and their biology and behavioral patterns are poorly documented.

The Altamira Oriole is generally a non-migratory year-round resident of their environment. There are five subspecies found in Mexico: flavescens is found in coastal Guerro, gularis is found is found on the coastal slope of Oaxaca and Chiapas, tamaulipensis is found in northern Mexico south to México, Puebla and Campeche, troglodytes is found in eastern Chiapas, and yucatanensis is found within the Yucatán Peninsula and Cozumel Island.

Common Misidentifications

The Altimira Oriole can be easily confused with the Hooded Oriole, Icterus cuculatus (smaller, has a thinner bill, and has two conspicuous white wing bars) and the male Streak-back Oriole, Icterus pustulatus (reddish-orange, has more extensive white wings, and an orange back with dark streaks).

Conservation Status

From a conservation perspective the Altamira Oriole is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. Altamira Orioles have survived in areas with new agriculture and human developments.