Montezuma Oropendola - The Golden Pendulum

BirdNote^® 
Montezuma Oropendola - The Golden Pendulum 
Written by Bob Sundstrom

This is BirdNote.

         [Montezuma Oropendola song]

On a winter morning in the Central American tropics, the sun rises. In a clearing, surrounded by dense forest, stand the ruins of a Mayan city. And on the warming air, this song:

         [Montezuma Oropendola song]

Perched beside its nest is the author of those gurgling tones – a Montezuma Oropendola. He sings again, this time with a sound like the pop of firecrackers.

         [Montezuma Oropendola song, with firecracker notes]

The 20-inch-tall male Montezuma Oropendola is feathered in rich chestnut brown. He's an oversized cousin of orioles, wielding a sharp spike of a bill tipped in red. As his song display begins, he grasps a branch in his feet, bows forward, and then hangs completely upside-down, wings fluttering. His long tail becomes clearly visible, bright yellow, pointing upward.

Our oropendola's now suspended head downward, swinging by his feet, singing. His tail describes a golden pendulum – the source of his name in Spanish – oropendola.

         [Montezuma Oropendola song, with firecracker notes]

For BirdNote, I’m Michael Stein.

BirdNote is supported by The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, dedicated to conserving Earth’s biodiversity through education and science. More at allaboutbirds.org.

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Senior Producer: Mark Bramhill
Producer: Sam Johnson
Managing Producer: Jazzi Johnson
Managing Producer: Ariana Remmel
Content Director: Jonese Franklin

Call of the Montezuma Oropendola provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Recorded by C. Duncan.
BirdNote’s theme music was composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler.
© 2015 BirdNote   March 2017/2019/2022 & September 2024 & November 2026
Narrator: Michael Stein

ID# MOOR-01c-2019-03-12   MOOR-01c