7.5 inches long. The Brown-headed Cowbird has a short conical bill and dark eyes. The adult male has a glossy black body with a faint green sheen. The head is brown. The female is grayish-brown but darker on the upperparts. The throat is pale and underparts are faintly streaked. The juvenile is browner and much more streaked than the female. The cowbird is smaller and shorter tailed than blackbirds.
The Brown-headed Cowbird is a common breeding bird that appears in mid March and departs by early November.
The Brown-headed Cowbird is named for its habit of feeding near cattle. This is a bird of the open country that walks on the ground while foraging for seeds and invertebrates. It often cocks its tail while feeding on the ground. The Cowbird is often found in large flocks of other blackbirds in the fall and winter. It is a brood parasite that lays its eggs in the nest of smaller birds. Female birds may lay up to 40 eggs per year. Originally the Cowbird’s range was in the Midwest where it associated with bison, but it has expanded its range due to forest fragmentation and the increase in cattle ranching. The song is a series of low, liquid gurgles followed by sliding whistles.
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