...I'm not 100% sure but think Al (below) is correct that this is may be an adult and therefore a female, rather than an SY male. I had thought the pattern to the tail may not be usual in adult females, even those with mostly male-like body plumage, but the apparent lack of contrast between brown and black feathers among wing coverts and tertials would point to an adult.
I'll be checking for more photos to help confirm this. Better photos of the open tail would be very instructive.
Cheers, Peter
On 4/17/2024 10:31 AM, Alvaro Jaramillo via groups.io wrote: > > SF birders > > That Baltimore Oriole looks interesting. First of all the > coloration is dull, not the bright orange you would expect. Also the > tail looks mainly yellowish-green, not the black and orange you would > expect. It is possible that this is actually a male like female. > Female Baltimore Orioles are super variable, unlike female Bullock’s, > and some are male like. According to Nancy Flood who studied the > species, she told me that every so often a female with male characters > would be around and that they would sing. The telltale clue seemed to > be the non black and orange tail. So keep this in mind. I guess it > could also be a young male, but usually they look a bit more patchy > than this in first spring. > > Regards > > Alvaro > > Alvaro Jaramillo > > <alvaro...> <mailto:<alvaro...> > > www.alvarosadventures.com <http://www.alvarosadventures.com> > > *From:*<SFBirds...> <SFBirds...> *On Behalf Of *Daniel Scali > *Sent:* Wednesday, April 17, 2024 10:17 AM > *To:* <SFBirds...> > *Subject:* Re: [SFBirds] Adult male Baltimore Oriole (?) at McLaren Park > > eBird list with photos: https://ebird.org/checklist/S169049628 > >
