#Molothrus ater

[birdygotback]

Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater)

© Dodge Rock

#brown-headed cowbird #molothrus ater #icteridae #passeriformes #dodge rock #birds

[na-bird-of-the-day]

BOTD: Brown-headed Cowbird

Photo: Miki Jourdan

"Centuries ago this bird probably followed bison herds on the Great Plains, feeding on insects flushed from the grass by the grazers. Today it follows cattle, and occurs abundantly from coast to coast. Its spread has represented bad news for other songbirds: Cowbirds lay their eggs in nests of other birds. Heavy parasitism by cowbirds has pushed some species to the status of 'endangered' and has probably hurt populations of some others."

- Audubon Field Guide

#birds #brown headed cowbird #birds of north america #north american birds #cowbird #cowbirds #blackbirds #passerines #american birds #birds of america #birds of the us #birds of canada #birds of mexico #bird #birding #bird watching #birdblr #birblr #Molothrus ater

[triruntu]

#497, a brown-headed cowbird.

Requests for birds are open, updates happen on Thursdays. [project tag] | [kofi] [commissions] Find me on: [twitter]

#bird #bird art #cowbird #brown headed cowbird #molothrus ater #daily draw #tri's art

[birds-in-trees]

Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater)

© Dodge Rock

#brown-headed cowbird #molothrus ater #icteridae #passeriformes #dodge rock #birds

[okbirdphotos]

Brown-headed Cowbird

Virginia, March 2024.

#birds #bird photography #brown-headed cowbird #BHCO #passeriformes #icteridae #Molothrus ater

[tenth-sentence]

Mr. Swainson has well remarked,¹ that with the exception of the Molothrus pecoris, to which must be added the M. niger, the cuckoos are the only birds which can be called truly parasitical; namely, such as 'fasten themselves, as it were, on another living animal, whose animal heat brings their young into life, whose food they live upon, and whose death would cause theirs during the period of infancy.'

1 Magazine of Zoology and Botany, vol. i. p. 217.

"Journal of Researches into the Natural History and Geology of the Countries Visited During the Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle Round the World, 1832-36" - Charles Darwin

#book quote #the voyage of the beagle #charles darwin #nonfiction #william john swainson #swainson #cowbird #brown headed cowbird #molothrus pecoris #molothrus ater #molothrus niger #molothrus bonariensis #shiny cowbird #birds #parasitic #parasite #cuckoo #dependent

[whats-in-a-sentence]

Cowbirds commonly invite birds of other species to preen them, but occasionally an interspecies encounter includes homosexual mounting when a House Sparrow is involved.

"Biological Exuberance: Animal Homosexuality and Natural Diversity" - Bruce Bagemihl

#book quotes #biological exuberance #bruce bagemihl #nonfiction #brown headed cowbird #molothrus ater #house sparrow #passer domesticus #interspecies #preening #homosexual #mounting

[sparrow-wings]

#birds #brown headed cowbird #molothrus ater

[squawkoverflow]

A new variant has been added!

Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) © Gustav Mützel

It hatches from black, bold, brown, due, glossy, open, other, overall, parasitic, short, stocky, stout, and unpopular eggs.

squawkoverflow - the ultimate bird collecting game          🥚 hatch    ❤️ collect     🤝 connect

#squawkoverflow #brown-headed cowbird #molothrus ater #birds #gustav mützel

[oncorhynchus-mykiss]

Molothrus ater Brown-headed cowbird (male and female)

Gustav Mützel, Die Nordamerikanische Vogelwelt, via Flickr

#molothrus #molothrus ater #brown headed cowbird #icteridae #passerines #aves #illustration #gustav mutzel #public domain

[alonglistofbirds]

Round 1 Group 1

Azure tit - Cyanistes cyanus

Blue-headed vireo - Vireo solitarius

Clay-coloured sparrow - Spizella pallida

Brown-headed cowbird - Molothrus ater

Brown pelican - Pelecanus occidentalis

Black-capped chickadee - Poecile atricapillus

#birds #poll #25% poll #described #non-bird listing #round 1

[alcnfr]

A Brown-Headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) splashing in the hanging birdbath...

#nature #my photography #brown headed cowbird #nature photography #cowbird #wildlife photography #bird bathing #bird bath

[swede1952]

Watchful Cowbird

“Perched gracefully, the Brown-headed Cowbird enjoys a moment of rest.” - Copilot

I watched this brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) for about an hour lounging around my backyard. Some people don't like these birds because they are "obligate brood parasites," meaning that the female lays her eggs and the nests of other species and depend on the other birds to raise their young. But I think it's just part of nature, a circle of life sort of thing. For them, "it is the way." ;-)

"Some birds, such as the Yellow Warbler, can recognize cowbird eggs but are too small to get the eggs out of their nests. Instead, they build a new nest over the top of the old one and hope cowbirds don’t come back. Some larger species puncture or grab cowbird eggs and throw them out of the nest. But the majority of hosts don’t recognize cowbird eggs at all." -allaboutbirds.org

#photo #photography #photographer #photographylovers #wildlife #nature #birds #birdwatching #birdsphotography #birds of north america #birdlovers #birdphotography #brown headed cowbird #bird #backyard birds #birbs #bird photography #bird watching #birding #birdingphotography #birds nature

[zoology-time]

Brown-headed Cowbird (juvenile), Molothrus ater

Brown-headed cowbirds are parasitic egg-layers, meaning they lay their eggs in the nest of other birds so they don’t have to lose energy raising the young themselves. This is why I also didn’t seen any adults nearby. I think it might have been cared for by a chipping sparrow or song sparrow, as those birds were close by.

#brown headed cowbird #cowbird #bird #ID

[thelostcanyon]

Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater), Christmas Mountains Oasis, Brewster County, Texas.

#birds #trans-pecos #texas #chihuahuan desert #photographers on tumblr

[fischotterkunst]

B-roll bird photos that I still think are neat

From the top: male White-throated sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) and female Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis), male Red-winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) and male Common grackle (Quiscalus quiscula), male Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) and male Mourning dove (Zenaida macroura), male brown-headed cowbirds (Molothrus ater), male Red-winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus), male Mourning dove (Zenaida macroura) and female brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater), Blue jays (Cyanocitta cristata), male Mourning dove (Zenaida macroura) and male brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater)

#birds #rivers and roads #my photos #river babbles