ML619902182
Bullock's x Baltimore Oriole (hybrid) Icterus bullockii x galbula
Contributor
Date
Location
- Age
- Not specified
- Sex
- Not specified
Observation details
Male. Most of the orange/black patterning on this bird follows a typical adult male Baltimore Oriole (BAOR). However, photos reveal that there are also orange spots on the head which is diagnostic of a hybrid. Adult BAOR would have a solid black hood with absolutely no orange. Further evidence for hybridization can be seen on the white wing bars which on a BAOR are uniform across the wing. This bird has an interrupted white wing bar that spans approximately a third of the wing. I was able to find another hybrid bird on eBird's database which approximately matched the head and wing markings. That bird can be found here - https://ebird.org/checklist/S111983131 Sibley's says that "backcrosses produce complete range of variation between parent species" which is why this bird looks almost entirely like a BAOR, but not quite. Additionally, its calls while I was there began with two notes that are part of the Bullocks repertoire and not the Baltimore's. When I was in TX Merlin was quick with BAOR sound ID's. In this instance, Merlin did not bring up an ID of any type, despite the bird singing frequently. I now realize, this is because this bird is not singing a true BAOR song, but an amalgamation of the two from it's parents.
Technical information
- Dimensions
- 1072 pixels x 1292 pixels
- Original file size
- 196.81 KB