Orioles add music, color, charm, and a better curb appeal to a home garden. There are endless benefits of having orioles visit your yard frequently.
From pest and weed control to environmental and wildlife conservation, the benefits are countless.
Today even homebuyers have realized the importance of a yard that receives feathered visitors frequently, a reason why they go for well-maintained homes with landscaping that attracts birds.
Among the birds you would want to attract to your gardens, Orioles must be at the top of the list and there are a good number of reasons for that.
In this guide, we will discuss what orioles are, why they are the best birds to attract to your yard, and most importantly the most effective ways to attract orioles to your yard.
What are orioles?
Orioles are medium-sized brightly colored birds (yellow, orange, golden, red, and black) with long tails and pointed bills.
The color variations are evident from species to species, with the main ones being Baltimore, Bullocks, Orchards, Scott’s and Hooded.
Male orioles are brighter than the female varieties.
Regardless of the species and color variations, all orioles have similar traits, likings, and behavior.
Orioles are one of those shy birds that prefer to stay high up in trees.
Female orioles build woven hanging nests where they nestle and feed the young ones from.
Orioles like to feed on fruits, flower nectar, jelly, and insects.
The birds are an easy spot during spring and summer, but this does not mean that attracting them during this time is straightforward.
Why orioles?
These are the primary reasons why you will love orioles in your garden:
• They will brighten up your yard – Even with no other reason, the bright colors of orioles will please every homeowner and bring a typical charm to any home.
Orioles are also excellent fliers, so you can imagine the sceneries they can create in your yard when you attract a good number of them.
• Orioles are songbirds – There is no better and relaxing feeling than to listen to a serious bird sing as you enjoy the cool air and beautiful scenery from your backyard.
Orioles are melodious birds capable of filling your garden with music and euphonious chirps.
• They eat a wide range of insects; hence if attracted to your garden can be a highly effective natural pest control method.
With this said, we can now dive into the ways you can use to attract and take advantage of these gorgeous birds.
How to attract orioles?
1. Start as Early as Possible
Although orioles are a common sight during summer, they migrate into your area as early as April.
Their spring migration is usually long and tiring.
Most of the orioles arriving at your yard during this time are normally cold and hungry; hence setting your Oriole feeders from late March will ensure that you attract the very first migrants.
With this strategy alone, your yard will be Orioles stopover year in year out.
2. Pick the Right Food, Feeders and Set Them Appropriately
As mentioned above, Orioles love sweet things and hence feeding them is relatively easy.
First, you should focus more on providing natural food for the orioles.
You can plant nectar-producing flowers, high fruit trees, and berry-bearing bushes.
For Orioles, even orange halves can be enough food sources to attract them.
Now that Orioles also feed on insects, you should minimize the use of pesticides in your yard to ensure that there is a decent population of healthy insects for the visiting orioles to feed on.
If you are a serious bird lover, you can prepare nectar formulations for the orioles as you do for the other birds using 1 part sugar and 4 parts boiled water.
You can also purchase commercial nectar solutions for the orioles.
It makes sense to use sugar solutions for orioles, considering that when they get to your yard, they will be looking for something to not only quench their thirst but also boost their lost energy.
Moving forward to the feeders, first, make sure that they are attractive to the orioles.
At least let them be orange as this is the color Orioles they recognize most.
Also, always ensure that the feeders are large enough, clean and that they always have fresh food.
Round up their feeding requirements by hanging the feeders in an open place away from human activity.
Separate the feeders so that the orioles will be more comfortable and freer to feed.
3. Provide Plenty of Clean Water Spots
Like any other birds, Orioles require water to quench their thirst and, most importantly, take a bath.
Here are some expert tips to make working water spots:
• Pick orange themed bird baths- Orange is the color that orioles resonate most with.
• Choose a birdbath with a shallow but wide basin- Orioles are highly attracted to shallow baths.
• Add a bubbler or dripper to the water- These birds love the sight and sound of moving water.
4. Add Orange to Your Backyard
Orioles are attracted to vibrant colors and nothing delights them other than the color orange.
This means that if you seriously want Orioles into your garden, you will have to do some adjustments. The most natural way to do this is by planting high trees and bushes that produce orange flowers.
Now that this may take some time to be practical and work for you, go for improvisations.
First, add as many orange feeders and drinkers/baths in your garden as possible.
You can also tie orange ribbons, fabrics, or even tapes to high trees to attract orioles.
5. Promote Orioles Nesting In Your Garden
This is one of the ways you will have orioles in your yard for a relatively long time.
Although Orioles do not nest in birdhouses, you can still encourage them to nest in your garden.
It is good to understand that Orioles prefer high trees, so if you already have some in your garden, this is where they will most likely build their nests.
In this case, you can encourage the birds to build nests in your yard by providing their preferred nest weaving materials such as slender fibers, lots of grasses, and plant fibers.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully, you now understand how you can attract orioles and add an alluring sight to your yard.
Keep in mind that the rule of thumb in attracting as many orioles as possible is correct timing.
Even if all the other strategies are working for you, they may not be yielding if your timing is poor.
Whether your first year attracting orioles is successful or not, keep using the above strategies and it will not take more than three rounds to attract these lovely birds into your yard!
