THE GOLDEN-ORIOLE 



[ORDEH : Pdsseriformes. FAMILY : OnolicUe] 

 PRELIMINARY CLASSIFIED NOTES 



[F. 0. B. JOURDAIN. W. P. PYCRAFT] 



GOLDEN-ORIOLE [Oriolus oriolus (Linnaeus). Oriolus galbula L. 

 French, loriot ; German, Pirol, Goldamsel ; Italian, rigogolo.~\ 



I. Description. The black wings and tail, contrasted with the rich gamboge 

 yellow of the rest of the plumage, distinguishes the male from all other British 

 birds. There is no seasonal change of plumage. Length 9 ins. [241 mm.]. The 

 male has the wings and tail and lores black. The outermost scapulars are black 

 along the free edge of the inner webs, the secondaries have pale yellow tips, the 

 primaries a narrow line of white along the free edge giving place to yellow at the 

 tip. The primaries of the major coverts have broad yellow tips. The two middle 

 tail feathers are black, the rest have yellow tips, the yellow gradually increasing 

 up the feather to the outermost, but the amount of yellow varies. The beak is of 

 an orange-brown colour, and the iris is lake red, while the legs and toes are lead 

 colour. In the female the upper parts are of a bright oil-green, brightest in the 

 rump. The throat and fore-breast are almost lavender-grey, faintly striated with 

 darker grey, while the breast and abdomen are white, the former with ash-coloured 

 striations. Flanks yellow with a tinge of green, under tail-coverts bright lemon- 

 yellow. The lesser wing-coverts are black with broad green fringes, the greater 

 coverts greyish black, the outer webs washed oil green ; the major coverts of the 

 primaries have broad white tips. The two middle tail feathers are black with a 

 strong metallic green sheen, the rest with basal half black washed with green, with 

 a large oval yellow spot on the tip of the inner web. The juvenile dress differs 

 conspicuously from that of the adult, the upper parts being of a pale yellowish 

 green, the under parts white, streaked with ash colour. The chin white, wing- 

 coverts oil-green with paler tips ; the primaries are dull black, the secondaries have 



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