Oriolus auratus
Silhouette: Charles J. Sharp · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The African golden oriole (Oriolus auratus), or African oriole, is a member of the oriole family of passerine birds which is a resident breeder in Africa south of the Sahara desert. It is a bird of thick bush and other well-wooded areas. The hanging basket-shaped nest is built in a tree, and contains two eggs. The food is insects and fruit, especially figs, found in the tree canopies where the orioles spend much of their time.
The name "oriole" was first recorded (in the Latin form oriolus) by Albertus Magnus in about 1250, and was stated to be onomatopoeic, from the song of the golden oriole. The New World orioles are similar in appearance to the Oriolidae, but are icterids unrelated to the Old World birds.
Found from Angola to central Mozambique The male is striking in the typical oriole black and yellow plumage, although the plumage is predominantly yellow... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mana Pools National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 2 | Lower Zambezi National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 3 | Hwange National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 4 | Gonarezhou National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 5 | Mikumi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 6 | Kafue National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 7 | Liwonde National Park | 🇲🇼 Malawi | |
| 8 | Ruaha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 9 | Chobe National Park | 🇧🇼 Botswana | |
| 10 | Niokolo-Koba National Park | 🇸🇳 Senegal | |
| 11 | Gorongosa National Park | 🇲🇿 Mozambique | |
| 12 | South Luangwa National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 13 | Moremi Game Reserve | 🇧🇼 Botswana | |
| 14 | Arusha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 15 | Etosha National Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia | |
| 16 | Tarangire National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 17 | Murchison Falls National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 18 | Lake Nakuru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 19 | Nyungwe National Park | 🇷🇼 Rwanda | |
| 20 | Lake Mburo National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 21 | Queen Elizabeth National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 22 | Ngorongoro Conservation Area | 🇹🇿 Tanzania |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Abuja | 🇳🇬 Nigeria | |
| 2 | Lusaka | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 3 | Lilongwe | 🇲🇼 Malawi | |
| 4 | Harare | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 5 | Serrekunda | 🇬🇲 Gambia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report an African Golden Oriole sighting in Niokolo-Koba National Park on a given day, based on 13 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 176th most-seen of the 215 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January and February
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an African Golden Oriole in Niokolo-Koba National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March–April, August–September and November–December, the lowest months. Those are among Niokolo-Koba National Park's driest months, with almost no rain against 300 mm in August. May–July and October have too few records to rate.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most African Golden 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.
10th of 22
Of the 22 parks where we can rate African Golden Oriole sightings, Niokolo-Koba National Park ranks 10th at under 5%. The best odds are in Mana Pools National Park (Zimbabwe, about 20%), Lower Zambezi National Park (Zambia, about 10%) and Hwange National Park (Zimbabwe, about 10%).
Same order: Passeriformes
The closest relatives of the African Golden Oriole that you can see in Niokolo-Koba National Park (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are Long-tailed Glossy Starling (about 90%), Yellow-crowned Gonolek (about 70%) and Common Bulbul (about 70%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the African Golden Oriole is recorded against all the birds logged in Niokolo-Koba National Park (13 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.
