Mystery Bird: Brown-headed Cowbird, Molothrus ater

Brown Headed Cowbird?

Thick bill, brown head.

Jim nailed it. Several of these and their female companions are targeting my resident black bird nests as I type. The male black birds get rather pissed off when these birds show up.

Brown-headed Cowbirds walk on the ground and are pretty fearless. I've found that they make great targets for slingshot practice.

Alas, this year our local robins have all built nests out of my reach, and the phoebes haven't nested at all near us, so I won't be plucking cowbird eggs out of nests this season.

Because or eastern woodland species are so unprepared for cowbirds, I have no qualms about editing nature a bit when it comes to these parasites.

Thanks for a fun site! Keep it up!

Oh RickK, you might want to remember that cowbirds are native and are protected. You may feel okay about killing them like we do house sparrows or starlings, but it is ILLEGAL.

i just want to reiterate what gindy said: it is illegal to harass or kill native bird species and cowbirds happen to be native species. further, the woodland birds are well-prepared to deal with them, much better at dealing with them than they are at dealing with stupid people who like to play god.

if i ever see you doing what you claim to do, i assure you that i would be (1) photographing you and (2) using my cell phone to call the police and to the local fish and wildlife office to report you.

What do we consider native. If your from the midwest, then they are native, but to the rest of the country they are not. These birds originated in the midwest and have spread like the plague from coast to coast in the last 400 years. They have been found in nests of 220 species of birds. I have 1 1/2 acres and I have had first hand experience with these birds which "grrl scientist" must lack. Yesterday I found the egg of a robin in my back yard, with the almost ready chick with it {infuriating}. Then I walked over to where my zinnias are and I found another little egg broken from a species I cannot identify. I have so many cowbirds at my house it is ridiculous, and I listen to the other birds in my trees screaming at them all the time trying to keep them out of their nest. I cannot believe these birds are protected and though I would not go to jail for the birds, if it was legal I would sit out all day with a bb gun to get rid of them. I know the rest of the birds would appreciate it!!! To "grrl scientist" is it necessary to call other stupid because their opinion differs from your own, and to let you know alot species of birds have had their numbers damaged by this parasitic bird that lays their eggs in others nests, so their young kicks out the others young, or just eats most of the food and starves them out. I am sure he did not know it was illegal or he would not have posted it. You could have been polite like the other, who simply explained it was illegal. Courtesy is key and opinions are only important to ourselves.

I am not a scientist but live on the edge of woods and have experienced the population explosion of cowbirds over the past 5 years.
It started with one pair and now their are MANY. I guess I would be tempted to shoot them too -- or if someone out there has a reasonable suggestion how to try to rid them I think it would be in the best interet of all the native songbirds!