Yellow-backed Oriole

Yellow-backed Oriole

Icterus chrysater

Silhouette: Matt Wilkins · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Panama City

In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%

82 Verified sightings at Panama City
3,273 In all 19 parks From 2019 to 2026
April Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Yellow-backed Oriole

The yellow-backed oriole (Icterus chrysater) is a species of bird in the family Icteridae. Yellow-backed orioles are a yellow-bodied, sexually monomorphic species. They average 21.5 cm (8.5 in) in length from beak to tail; making it a relatively medium-sized oriole species. Exposed skin and claws are bluish-black; in adults, the bill is black, with the base of the mandible becoming bluish-grey.

Adult males display strongly contrasting yellow and black plumage. The wings, tail, shoulders, throat, and face are all black; by contrast, the back and underparts are an extremely bright yellow. Adult females closely resemble males, but yellow parts appear slightly greenish. Despite differences in plumage coloration between sexes, it is likely that this species is extremely difficult to sex in the field.

Immature yellow-backed orioles resemble adult females in overall pattern, but are greener; additionally, the flight feathers, which are black in females, are dark brown. Immature yellow-backed orioles are easily distinguished from adult females by their olive eye-line.

Similar species include the South American yellow oriole (Icterus nigrogularis). Wikipedia →

Sounds

Song0:06

Panama · 2025

© Sue Riffe · XC1071637 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Recording0:40

Colombia · 2024

© Andrés Mauricio López · XC902716 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Call0:38

Colombia · 2021

© Peter Boesman · XC693625 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Celaque National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~30%
2 Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~20%
3 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
4 La Tigra National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~10%
5 Parque Natural Metropolitano 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
6 San Lorenzo Protected Forest 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
7 Farallones de Cali National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
8 Sierra de la Macarena National Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~10%
9 Chagres National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~10%
10 Calakmul Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
11 Henri Pittier National Park 🇻🇪 Venezuela
<5%
12 Chingaza National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
13 Los Nevados National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
14 Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
15 Darién National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
16 Tayrona National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
17 Cañón del Sumidero National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
18 Celestún Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
19 Cusuco National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Bogota 🇨🇴 Colombia
~40%
2 Cali 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
3 Panama City 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
4 Barranquilla 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
5 Tegucigalpa 🇭🇳 Honduras
<5%
6 Caracas 🇻🇪 Venezuela
<5%
7 Medellín 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Xcaret 🇲🇽 Mexico In captivity
2 Temaikén 🇦🇷 Argentina In captivity
3 Aviario Nacional de Colombia 🇨🇴 Colombia In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Yellow-backed Oriole in Panama City?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Yellow-backed Oriole sighting in Panama City on a given day, based on 82 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 177th most-seen of the 363 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Yellow-backed Oriole in Panama City?

Any time of year

In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Yellow-backed Oriole in Panama City on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.

What time of day is best to see a Yellow-backed Oriole?

Between 6 and 9 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Yellow-backed Oriole sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Panama City the best place to see a Yellow-backed Oriole?

3rd of 7

Of the 7 cities where we can rate Yellow-backed Oriole sightings, Panama City ranks 3rd at under 5%. The best odds are in Bogota (Colombia, about 40%) and Cali (Colombia, under 5%).

Where does the Yellow-backed Oriole sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Yellow-backed Oriole is recorded against all the birds logged in Panama City (82 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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