Molothrus ater
male
The Brown-headed Cowbird is a familiar plump-bodied songbird. The sexes are dissimilar. Adult males have a dark brown hood and otherwise blackish plumage with a green sheen. Adult females have dull gray-brown body plumage with a pale throat, malar stripe, eye surround, and supercilium; the wings and tail are subtly darker than the body. Juveniles are similar to an adult female, but the underparts are streaked, the back feathers have pale margins, and the wings show indistinct pale wingbars.
The Brown-headed Cowbird is present year-round in the south of its range. Elsewhere it is a migrant summer breeder across much of northern North America, present mainly from April to August. It is a nest parasite of other songbirds and does not undertake parental care of its offspring.
juvenile
female
FACT FILE
LENGTH 7.5 in (19 cm)
FOOD Invertebrates, seeds, and berries
HABITAT Farmland and open country
STATUS Widespread and common summer visitor across northern North America; resident in the south
VOICE Song comprises a few strangled gurgles followed by a thin whistle. Call is a rattling kerrk
