I happened to be sitting on the deck when this Baltimore Oriole made its first visit of the season to my backyard hummingbird feeder, which it prefers to the larger oriole feeder.

As our garden transformed last fall from actively growing into dormant and dying, we left many stems and other material in place instead of tidying up all of the dead stuff.
A few days ago this Baltimore Oriole was a benefactor of our decision, peeling fibers off of this Butterfly Bush stem for its mates’ nest.
I believe we will continue gardening in this wildlife friendly way.
The female Baltimore Oriole is a frequent visitor to this feeder. She vigilantly monitors our movements and flies away if we move too much.