INDIAN GOLDEN ORIOLE

Eurasian oriole male

INDIAN GOLDEN ORIOLE, EURASIAN GOLDEN ORIOLE, Oriolus kundoo

Indian oriole [male]

It was the first week of the summer holidays in 2014. April 8th of 2014.The overcast sky  presented and the sultry morning and promised a drizzle.

The splendid growing of the tree was not  alone on the  hedge. I haven’t seen such a fruit tree before.I haven’t noticed  it before…in the backyard  at Manissery.

The name of the tree was unknown to all except for grandma.

She introduced it as Edala a wild variety of  tree without much significance.

They bore fruits even in  first week’ of the April .

INDIAN ORIOLE (female)

Barbets had already perched on the fruit bearing wild Edala tree before the yellow coloured Oriole came around four pm .

The barbets are prolific fruit eaters they devoured the violetish purple coloured fruits leaning and slipping along and across the tender twigs.

Indian oriole (female)

They appeared as if they were born to gobble fruits I felt that it is rightly said that the Dinosaurs  underwent evolutionary adaptations and shrank to evolve into birds.

A few minutes later a bird, yellowish green in colour perched on the branch .

It was  not much  larger than a sterling .

It was the female bird of Indian oriole..

I could identify the brown streaked under parts.

Eurasian oriole

The bird has  a light pink beak .

the bird looked around and started pecking tiny fruits from the wild fruit bearing tree.

It set the fruit in between the upper and lower beaks and swallowed.,but the green barbet  swallowed the fruits  without any delay.

Then its dark olive brown wings were spread  as if it took a stretching exercise with ease.

A  oriole male  bird alighted on the close by branch shaking the branch slightly. A thrush flew away from the shady part of  the foliage where  semi-darkness stuck upon the branches.

Oriolus kundoo

It was perching on a semi curved branch of a  strange scented shade of the fruit tree.

The male Indian oriole birds incredibly coloured birdwith striking yellow and jet black plumage and fully black wings.

the beautiful golden colour contrasts starkly with the largely black wings and tail.the black streak that extends through the red eye add charm to the bird.

Eurasian oriole

The golden velvety shades  and black velvety shades are woven together oppositely to that of a burnig tiger.

The splendid growing of the tree not  alone on a hedge..

that remained slightly humming in the wind.

I felt that it was enjoying the delight of being alone.

The trees lovely and fill every branch with fruit tree hardly looses an inch of space to fill.

He doesn’t have the ancient looks of hornbill in the dense foliage of the inner garden.

The bird was Formerly considered as subspecies of Eurasian golden Oriole.

They differ in calls and plumage besides bearing morphological differences.

The bird is common in kerala  during winter especially found in evergreen and most deciduous forests,well wooded areas in villages and towns.

It is found in all geographical zones including villages and towns.

The bird is a migratory bird that comes to kerala during winter.The earlest date seen in kerala is in september. It is believed that the bird returns to north  before the first week of may.

No bird nests were spotted in kerala.It can be considered as A MIGRATORY BIRD OF KERALA.`

Orioles are found generally in the plains of India and the lower ranges of the Himalayas upto 1400 mts.Indian oriole is a resident bird  of north india.

Their main breeding range is north India.

The arrival of these birds in North india (from south india  including Kerala and SriLanka.)coicides the ripening of mangoes in  Apri in northern India.

So people call that mango bird.

We can see the parallels between the colour of the  ripened mango fruit ,the green yellow pattern of the autumn mango leaves and the colou of the bird.

Indian oriole

One of the ones that Midas touched, Who failed to touch us all, Was that confiding prodigal, The blissful oriole

Indian oriole

As Emily described it is Midas touch indeed.in Kerala.

It is believed that if an oriole sits on ground the spot can be considered as significant, if you dig at the spot youth will surely get gold.

To hear an oriole sing May be a common thing, Or only a divine.