Brown-headed Cowbirds have a bit of a bad reputation, and it’s not without reason!

These birds are known as “brood parasites” (doesn’t that just sound awful!) which means that they lay their eggs in other bird’s nests and then leave their babies there to be cared for by the “host” bird.

Although I can’t condone the Cowbird’s poor parenting, I would say that the males are rather handsome with their sleek black bodies and their rich brown heads.

A couple of them showed up the other day, but didn’t stick around long. The picture below would make it seem like a Dove dive-bombed them and frightened them away…

…but really, my labra-gal scared them off while in hot pursuit of a trespassing Crow.

The Cowbirds come in at #19 in the April Thirty-Bird Challenge. Success is only eleven birds away!