The Baltimore Oriole was voted the 2025 Haikubox Bird of the Year!
The Baltimore Oriole is one of about 30 species of New World orioles, birds in the Icteridae family which includes blackbirds, grackles, meadowlarks, and cowbirds. Old World orioles, like the Eurasian Golden Oriole, are part of the Oriolidae family, so while they look similar to New World orioles, they are not closely related. The two groups achieved similar looks thanks to convergent evolution, and they both bear the “oriole” name because of those shared traits.
Male Baltimore Orioles migrate before females, a reproductive strategy called protandry. During this male-only time, they sing to establish and defend territories (listen to a May 2024 Haikubox recording here). Once the females arrive, listen for their song.
The visualization of 2025 Baltimore Oriole data (over 80,000 data points) is fascinating. We learned that Baltimore Orioles' vocalizations are intense but fleeting. These birds quickly switch from winter’s low-level chatter to blasting out songs and calls starting in late-April. While their bold vocalizations continue into June, you can see the sharp intensity peak and quick decline in mid-May. By then their energies are focused on chick-rearing and not on song-making.
We also compared Haikubox bioacoustics data to human-recorded eBird data (March-May, all years).
You can also view the bioacoustic maps we created for the second place Barn Swallow (and read our June 2025 newsletter/blog post about them), plus the Black-and-white Warbler and White-crowned Sparrow.
