Orioles on Tree
Among the most coveted backyard birds, Baltimore orioles, Orchard orioles and Bullock’s orioles have brilliant orange and black plumage and craft fascinating gourd-shaped nests at the ends of tree branches. Some people attract orioles to their backyard feeders and have no problem getting these colorful birds to come back every year, but people who are not as lucky go years without seeing one of these incredible flyers in their yard. Discover what foods orioles love to eat and the best tips for feeding orioles.
What Foods Do Orioles Eat?
Orioles don’t eat seeds, so they won’t use a standard bird feeder. Baltimore orioles eat fruit, nectar and insects. According to David Musumeche of Backyard Chirper, “the ideal oriole feeding station should be capable of holding fruit, a sugar water solution holder, mealworm holders and jelly containers…When it comes to the height of your feeding station, around seven feet off of the ground should suffice.”
Feed Grape Jelly to Orioles
Courtesy Lisa King
Welcome spring, and the Orioles love sweet sugary treats as they complete their long migrations. Grape jelly and fruit are energy foods that provide them with the energy they need to continue their travels. When it comes to feeding orioles, most backyard birders will attest to the merits of grape jelly.
As a best practice, serve grape jelly without artificial sweeteners or colors or flavors. You can purchase a commercial jelly feeder, but a shallow container will do. Birds & Blooms reader LuAnn Crim comments, “You can put grape jelly out for orioles in small tuna-sized cans or Miracle Whip lids. Just secure the container to the ground, or they’re going to knock it straight to the ground.”
EXPERT TIP: The grape jelly can be thinned with water for a little more stretch. Mix one part grape jelly to one part water in your blender until it has the consistency of thick juice.
How Do Orioles Find Feeders?
“Baltimore orioles (above) came to my feeder within minutes of my setting it up. How did they discover it so quickly?” Birds & Blooms reader Nancy Schanda asks.
“We are often astonished at how quickly birds appear when feeders are placed outside for the first time,” write birding experts Kenn and Kimberly Kaufman. Many types of birds appear to form a mental image of what some feeders look like and they will recognize them even from a distance. In the case of your oriole visitors, they likely already were nearby, even if you hadn’t spotted them — they can be extremely stealthy among tree foliage — so it didn’t take long for them to notice the feeders. Wild birds are naturally very attuned to alterations in their environment, and particularly those connected with possible food.”
How to Select an Oriole Feeder
Orioles love oranges, and orange halves or slices are a preferred treat. Most oriole feeders have a design feature that accommodates oranges. Oranges are a great addition to any oriole feeder, but some claim orioles will not feed from their feeders. Reader Diane B writes, “Make sure your feeder has an orange color on it. “I typically try to make the roof orange so they can see it when they fly over.”
Orioles Hummingbird Feed
Will Orioles Use Hummingbird Feeders?
Kenn and Kimberly add, “So far we haven’t found an oriole feeder that the orioles prefer to hummingbird feeders. We didn’t want to stop feeding either species of birds, so we explored another option. To prevent marauding orioles from dumping all our precious sugar water on the ground, we simply bought the kind of hummingbird feeder that has a large glass bottle for the sugar water. This glass reservoir will contain nearly 4 cups of nectar, and the heft of it—filled or not—is enough weight to keep the feeder hanging true beneath the feeder’s centuries creatures!
Remove Ants From Oriole Feeders
Place orange halves in a shallow dish of water to deter ants. Replace your orange halves daily. They tend to dry out quickly and can develop mold, which is dangerous for birds.
Here’s how to use an ant moat with your hummingbird feeders.
How to Make Oriole Food
Orioles enjoy the same sugar water your hummingbirds do, at the same ratio of sugar to water. Mix four parts hot water to one part sugar, and stir until sugar is dissolved. You may also enjoy this oriole nectar recipe.
Orioles will also visit hummingbird feeders with built-in perches. They can’t hover like hummers, so they require a landing place and a drink. They are drawn to the color orange, so specialized feeders have been established just for them.
EXPERT TIP: You can purchase nectar feeders specifically designed for orioles, but as long as your hummingbird feeder has perches around the perimeter, you need not have separate feeders, unless one species begins to chase the other away.
Hand Feed Orioles During The Summer
After nestlings start hatching, orioles’ diet shifts to include insects, which contain more protein and nutrition. There is wild Orioles eat caterpillars. Allow me to explain: In your own backyard, you can start feeding orioles mealworms as a different option, which could easily be offered in an open dish.
EXPERT TIP: Once nesting season starts, fill your oriole feeder’s grape jelly dish with mealworms.
Do Orioles Eat Suet?
Orioles (depending on the species) may also stop at suet feeders in nesting season. And some southern states backyard birders are hearing from orioles on their sueter feeders in winter. Try suet cakes with orange flavored. But in general, you’ll find more success feeding orioles with oranges, sugar water and jelly.
Begin Offering Orioles Food Early, And Stick With It
The timing of feeding orioles in your yard is probably the most critical of the tips. The important thing, experts and amateurs alike emphasize, is to put out your oriole feeders at least several weeks before you expect to see orioles in your area. If the birds don’t notice the feeders as soon as they return in the spring, they are not likely to begin using them later.
If you don’t get orioles early when they first start arriving, you might not get them at all for that year, says Anne Schmauss, a birding expert. She also notes that orioles may not visit your yard for many years, so patience is also a factor.
MD Imdadul Haque is the founder of BirdzFly, a research-backed resource on North American backyard birds. Drawing on years of independent study into bird identification, behavior, and migration patterns, he writes in-depth guides designed to help US birders understand the species in their own backyards — from common feeder visitors to seasonal migrants passing through.
