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The Black-headed oriole (Oriolus larvatus) is a bird found in South Africa, Kenya and Zimbabwe. Woods and gardens in southern and eastern Africa. It eats insects and other small invertebrates, fruit and nectar. The IUCN Red List lists it as Least Concern.

🏡 Where the Black-headed oriole lives

Woods and gardens in southern and eastern Africa.

🍽️ What it eats

• 🐛 Insects & bugs40%
• 🍎 Fruit40%
• 🌸 Nectar10%
• 🌰 Seeds & nuts10%

A rough guide to its diet over a year. Source: EltonTraits (Wilman et al. 2014).

Conservation status

Hear the Black-headed oriole

Recorded by Paul Driver (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0), xeno-canto XC777878. Trimmed to a few seconds.

Questions about the Black-headed oriole

Where does the Black-headed oriole live?

The Black-headed oriole lives in South Africa, Kenya and Zimbabwe. Woods and gardens in southern and eastern Africa.

What does the Black-headed oriole eat?

insects and other small invertebrates (about 40%), fruit (about 40%), nectar (about 10%), seeds and nuts (about 10%). These are rough shares of its diet over a year, from the EltonTraits database.

Is the Black-headed oriole endangered?

There are plenty of these birds. Its IUCN Red List category is Least Concern.

More birds from Africa

• Northern bald ibis
• Mauritius kestrel
• Lappet-faced vulture
• Dodo
• Rodrigues solitaire
• Réunion ibis

Sources: IUCN Red List (via Wikidata), EltonTraits 1.0 (Wilman et al. 2014), GBIF sightings for countries, Wikipedia. Last updated 2026-10-19.