The Orioles

This is a little post about Baltimore Orioles but not the baseball kind.  It's about the kind that swoops through our area in early to middle May with the peak time being from May 3rd through May 9th.  So here it is, May 6th and we're having constant sighting of Baltimore Orioles.   I'd like to say that we got our oranges out in a timely manner because we're very observant or 'on the ball' but that wouldn't be true at all.  We got our oranges out in a timely manner because my sister, Laurel, posted a picture on Facebook with the excited text that "the orioles are back"!  As soon as she did that, I put out oranges and after another suggestion from Laurel, added grape jelly.  The first oriole showed up in no time.

And soon I was taking lots and lots of pictures.

 This guy was really digging on his orange but who could blame him.  The naval oranges this year are sweet, juicy, and amazing.

 So you'll notice that the oriole in the first pictures is a much lighter orange than the ones in the most recent pictures.  I thought at first it was because of a difference in lighting or that my camera settings were off on one set but it turns out that orioles come in different hues.  I know this because I saw one of each color at the same time just a little while ago.  Turns out, the adult males are darker and the juvenile males and the females are lighter.

Anyway, if you haven't put any oranges out yet, hurry and do so.  They are beautiful birds with a beautiful song and they just don't stay around very long.