Striking gold this summer

No bird song brightens the soul quite like the tuneful notes of the golden oriole.

Once heard, it is never forgotten. So enchanting are the fluty wolf whistles that many believe it is the ultimate chorister of our ancient woodlands.

Like many of my generation of birdwatchers, listening to its echoing spring song required an annual pilgrimage to the East Anglian poplar matchwood plantations, where the thrush-size orioles thrived during the latter years of the last century.

Despite the male oriole’s striking plumage of dazzling lemon, accentuated by ebony wings, they remained remarkably elusive until betrayed by their loud singing. The shy females, a shade of leafy green, were always almost impossible to see.

Slowly, the demand for matches dwindled and so did the brilliant orioles.

By 2016, there were no confirmed reports of the birds breeding anywhere in the UK.

There was a recent flutter of excitement when sharp-eared birdwatchers picked up the strains of oriole song on an episode of the television detective drama, Grantchester. But it transpired the soundtrack had been dubbed to give the period episode more authenticity.

In truth, the oriole, a bird more associated with Mediterranean oak glades, has always been on the edge of its range in British woodlands. The only sightings in recent times have been wayward European birds during spring and autumn migration.

But this year’s topsy-turvy weather has given optimism that the oriole may, once again, start to colonise. Charting weekly reports from bird news service Rare Bird Alert through early May into June has revealed the biggest incursion of orioles in living memory. As many as 100 were recorded across the country.

Several were detected from their song in riverside black poplar trees, the habitat preferred by the small populations of orioles that exist in the Netherlands and Belgium.

With such unprecedented numbers there is every chance a female may have been wooed by the magical entreaties. Hopefully enough to have woven a nest that will give rise to a new generation of these glorious summer visitors.

Despite the dazzling yellow plumage, they remain elusive

@BIRDERMAN