Icterus cucullatus
Silhouette: Matt Wilkins · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~30%
The hooded oriole (Icterus cucullatus) is a medium-sized New World oriole. The male of this species ranges in color from a bright orange to a paler yellow, with a black back, face, tail and bib, with the wing containing two white bars. The female is more of an olive color with some yellow accents.
Adults have a curved bill which is completely black and white wing bars. The adult male has a deep yellowish orange head with black on the face and throat; they are black on the back, wings and tail, orange on the underparts. The adult female is olive-green on the upper parts, yellowish on the breast and belly. Their calls consist of whistling and wheets, while their song is a mixture of both.
Their breeding habitat is open areas with trees, especially palms, across the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The nest is a tightly woven pouch attached to the underside of a leaf or tree branch. Sometimes their nest is filled with the egg of a brown-headed cowbird which is a parasite bird that lays its eggs in other birds nests for that species to take care of.
These birds migrate in flocks south to Mexico's southwestern coast; they are permanent residents... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cabo Pulmo National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 2 | Bahía de Loreto National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 3 | Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 4 | Celestún Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 5 | El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 6 | Calakmul Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 7 | Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 8 | Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 9 | Saguaro National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Cumbres de Monterrey National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 11 | Joshua Tree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 12 | Death Valley National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 13 | Channel Islands National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 14 | Big Bend National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 15 | Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇧🇿 Belize | |
| 16 | Zion National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 17 | Grand Canyon National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 18 | Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tijuana | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 2 | San Diego | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Guadalajara | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 5 | Puebla | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 6 | León | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 7 | San Francisco | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Toluca | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 9 | Sacramento | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Las Vegas | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Berlin Zoological Garden | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 2 | Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Aquarium Berlin | 🇩🇪 Germany |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Hooded Oriole sighting in Death Valley National Park on a given day, based on 48 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 103rd most-seen of the 213 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Hooded Oriole in Death Valley National Park on a given day, against under 5% in July to March, the lowest months.
Between 5 and 8 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Hooded Oriole sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
12th of 18
Of the 18 parks where we can rate Hooded Oriole sightings, Death Valley National Park ranks 12th at about 10%. The best odds are in Cabo Pulmo National Park (Mexico, about 60%), Bahía de Loreto National Park (Mexico, about 60%) and Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve (Mexico, about 50%). All parks ranked.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Hooded Oriole is recorded against all the birds logged in Death Valley National Park (48 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
