Brown-headed cowbird

Perched side by side on a bare branch, a male and female brown-headed cowbird catch the warm light of an early summer morning.

Males have a glossy, iridescent black body with a chocolate-brown head, while females are a soft, plain brown. Cowbirds are known for laying their eggs in the nests of other birds, which raise the young as their own. They feed on seeds and insects in fields, pastures, and around feeders, and are common across southern Manitoba in the warmer months.

This is a favourite frame of a male and female brown-headed cowbird, sharing a branch at sunrise.

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