The Eurasian golden oriole is, as you might expect a small yellow bird who spends its warm months in the northern hemisphere throughout Europe and Asia’s temperate regions. During the colder months, most golden orioles migrate south to the heart of and south of the African continent. Because they are so populous and widely distributed throughout the world, the IUCN and BirdLife International classifies the Eurasian golden oriole as a species of least concern for extinction.

As is typical of many birds, the plumage on the male is bright and eye catching, a brilliant yellow as bright as daylight with black wings, while the female is a more subdued greenish color. Although brightly colored, they are often well-camouflaged among the leaves. They are also known to be fairly shy and these two factors can make them hard to spot.

Fact: the golden oriole is an omnivore who prefers to feed on fruits and insects, but will also eat opportunistically, expanding their diet to include cereals, grains and seeds.

The oriole inhabits a varied selection of environments, including the forests, river valleys and plantations of Western Europe as well as the coniferous East European forests. While they may stop in treeless areas to forage, especially during migration, they almost never make a home in such an area, as they nest almost exclusively in tree forks, typically laying between 3 and 6 eggs at a time. Growing up to around 9.5 inches (24 cm), these birds are not too atypical among oriole species in size.

Golden orioles have a very distinct flute-like call which can sometimes sound much like their name “or-ee-ole”. They can usually be heard from quite a distance. Experts say that even a layperson can hear and remember a golden’s call for life upon hearing it once or twice.