Sighting Record for Utah

Common name:	Baltimore Oriole
Scientific name:	Icterus galbula
Date:	5/23/2015
Time:	11:45 am
Length of time observed:	5 minutes
Number:	1
Age:	unknown
Sex:	male
Location:	hiking the Y trail (along the second turn)
County:	Utah
Latilong:
Elevation:
Distance to bird:	3-4 feet
Optical equipment:	none needed
Weather:	partly cloudy
Light Conditions:
Description: Size of bird:	average
(Description:) Basic Shape:	songbird
(Description:) Overall Pattern:	black head with bright orange chest and orange stripe on the wings
(Description:) Bill Type:
(Description:) Field Marks and Identifying Characteristics:	We noticed the song of this songbird while we were hiking down the mountain and so we walked slowly until we could locate it in a small tree just in front of us. I was surprised to see the distinctive markings--bright orange chest, black head, white stripe across the wings. We moved here from North Carolina and I didn't think that Baltimore Orioles could be found this far west, so we came right home to look it up.
Song or call & method of delivery:	Beautiful oriole songbird. He was singing on repeat.
Behavior:	Just sitting on a branch. We approached slowly, but he didn't seem bothered by us.
Habitat:	Small trees and low scrub.
Similar species and how were they eliminated:	This bird is just so distinctive that I didn't think it could be any other species, but we looked through all our bird guides and both my son and I agreed that it was the Baltimore Oriole we had seen.
Previous experience with this & similar species:	Avid bird watchers in North Carolina until we moved here, and so we are very familiar with various kinds of songbirds, chickadees, finches, cardinals, nuthatches, etc.
References consulted:	Audubon Bird Guide, allaboutbirds.org
Description from:	Notes taken at the time of the sighting
Observer:	Rebecca Riding
Observer's address:	773 N 300 W American Fork, UT 84003
Observer's e-mail address:	**
Other observers who independently identified this bird:	[Rebecca's son]
Date prepared:	5/24/2015
Additional material:
Additional_Comments:	Thanks for this page! We were so excited that we wanted to be able to tell someone what we'd seen.