John Ealy, one of my former editors at the Denver Post (he saved me from myself more times than I want to admit), invited me over to his house this morning near Roxborough Park in Douglas County to search for the interesting oriole. We ended up with several good looks but lousy photographs of the bird. (Zapruder-style pix attached.) I haven't seen a hooded oriole in more than ten years, so I will leave the ID to those who know the bird better. John said it was his third day seeing the bird in his backyard.
The oriole is a brilliant yellow with black masked face, long bill, black tail, and a strong white wingbar. It was about as long as a starling but not nearly as chunky. John saw the bird just before I arrived. After it failed to return for 90 minutes, I played a hooded oriole song, which it responded to twice. I heard it call "veek," which sounded close to the hooded oriole call on the Sibley app.
Hope this helps.
Good birding.
Mark Obmascik
Denver, CO
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