Birdfinding.info ⇒ Uncommon and easy to miss. Sites where it has been found consistently include the Edmond and Quilesse Forest Reserves, the Des Cartiers Trail, the hills overlooking Soufrière, Piton Flor, and the Marquis forest above Grande Anse Beach.
St. Lucia Oriole
Icterus laudabilis
Endemic to St. Lucia, where it occurs in all native forest habitats and in ornamental gardens.
Identification
Black with yellowish-orange shoulders, belly, lower back and rump. The bill is dark with a pale bluish wedge at the base of the lower mandible.
St. Lucia Oriole. (Grande Anse, St. Lucia; May 27, 2014.) © Richard Bonser
St. Lucia Oriole. (Park Estate, Anse la Raye, St. Lucia; January 27, 2013.) © John C. Mittermeier
St. Lucia Oriole. (Soufrière, St. Lucia; March 6, 2018.) © Brian Sullivan
St. Lucia Oriole, yellower than most. © Matt Orsie
St. Lucia Oriole. (Quilesse Forest Reserve, Micoud, St. Lucia; February 21, 2014.) © Stephen Gast
St. Lucia Oriole. (Soufrière, St. Lucia; March 6, 2018.) © Brian Sullivan
St. Lucia Oriole. (Soufrière, St. Lucia; March 6, 2018.) © Brian Sullivan
St. Lucia Oriole. (Soufrière, St. Lucia; March 6, 2018.) © Brian Sullivan
St. Lucia Oriole. (Park Estate, Anse la Raye, St. Lucia; January 27, 2013.) © John C. Mittermeier
St. Lucia Oriole. (Park Estate, Anse la Raye, St. Lucia; January 27, 2013.) © John C. Mittermeier
St. Lucia Oriole. (Marquis Estate, Dauphin, St. Lucia; January 17, 2015.) © Jim Tietz
St. Lucia Oriole. (Quilesse Forest Reserve, Micoud, St. Lucia; February 21, 2014.) © Stephen Gast
St. Lucia Oriole. (Soufrière, St. Lucia; March 6, 2018.) © Brian Sullivan
St. Lucia Oriole. (Soufrière, St. Lucia; March 6, 2018.) © Brian Sullivan
St. Lucia Oriole. (Soufrière, St. Lucia; March 6, 2018.) © Brian Sullivan
St. Lucia Oriole. (Soufrière, St. Lucia; March 6, 2018.) © Brian Sullivan
Voice. Song is described as a “drawn-out series of melodic whistles,” and reminiscent of Orchard Oriole.
Notes
Monotypic species.
IUCN Red List Status: Near Threatened.
References
BirdLife International 2016. Icterus laudabilis. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T22724153A94851792. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22724153A94851792.en. (Accessed May 24, 2019.)
Bond, J. 1979. Birds of the West Indies (Fourth Edition). Collins, London.
eBird. 2019. eBird: An online database of bird distribution and abundance. Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, N.Y. http://www.ebird.org. (Accessed May 24, 2019.)
Fraga, R. 2019. St Lucia Oriole (Icterus laudabilis). In Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D.A. Christie, and E. de Juana, eds.). Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. https://www.hbw.com/node/62272. (Accessed May 24, 2019.)
Jaramillo, A., and P. Burke. 1999. New World Blackbirds: The Icterids. Princeton University Press, Princeton, N.J.
Raffaele, H., J. Wiley, O. Garrido, A. Keith, and J. Raffaele. 1998. A Guide to the Birds of the West Indies. Princeton University Press, Princeton, N.J.
Wauer, R.H. 1996. A Birder’s West Indies: An Island-by-Island Tour. University of Texas Press, Austin.