{"id":130524,"date":"2024-07-13T02:50:54","date_gmt":"2024-07-13T07:50:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=130524"},"modified":"2024-07-12T17:36:42","modified_gmt":"2024-07-12T22:36:42","slug":"young-brown-headed-cowbird-with-a-gluttonous-appetite","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/07\/13\/young-brown-headed-cowbird-with-a-gluttonous-appetite\/","title":{"rendered":"Young Brown-headed Cowbird With A Gluttonous Appetite"},"content":{"rendered":"

This is a short story, based in facts, about a gluttonous young Brown-headed Cowbird that visited my friend Steve Creek’s feeder in Arkansas<\/span><\/a> for several days.<\/p>\n

The immature cowbird earned the nickname “Porky” because their appetite seemed insatiable.<\/p>\n

\"YoungYoung Brown-headed Cowbird gorging on sunflower seeds \u2013 Nikon D500, f8, 1\/640, ISO 800, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

This young Brown-headed Cowbird would come into the sunflower seed basket and eat one seed after another. He or she would consume so many sunflowers seeds that we could see it lay down in the seed basket at times and it would still keep eating. It actually seemed to have trouble lifting off after a pig out session!<\/p>\n

\"ImmatureImmature Brown-headed Cowbird in Arkansas \u2013 Nikon D500, f8, 1\/250, ISO 1000, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

The presence of the immature cowbird in the seed basket made it challenging for other smaller birds to come and feed. Sometimes, the other birds waited for an opportunity to quickly snatch a sunflower seed when they saw enough space in the basket next to the chonky cowbird.<\/p>\n

\"YoungYoung Brown-headed Cowbird at a birdbath \u2013 Nikon D500, f8, 1\/320, ISO 1000, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

By observing the behavior of the young cowbird, we determined that the host parents of the immature bird were a pair of Northern Cardinals.<\/p>\n

The young cowbird didn’t beg from any other species that visited the feeder; the biological parents, who are brood parasites, were nowhere to be found.<\/p>\n

When the cardinals flew to the seed feeder, this immature cowbird would beg for food from them. This behavior was peculiar because that begging happened despite being surrounded by food that it gorged on several times a day.<\/p>\n

\"ImmatureImmature Brown-headed Cowbird about to dive into sunflower seeds \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/250, ISO 1000, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

I’m not sure why the young Brown-headed Cowbird<\/span><\/a> stopped visiting the feeder after several days. Perhaps it had a hankering for something different.<\/p>\n

During the time it did visit the feeder, this ravenous cowbird certainly kept us entertained! Nature continues to amuse and amaze me.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my Brown-headed Cowbird photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This is a short story, based in facts, about a gluttonous young Brown-headed Cowbird that visited my friend Steve Creek’s feeder in Arkansas for several days.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":130512,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13950,27,425,13951],"tags":[15342,14182,2428,7399,7400,4478,13981,15343,10285,4067,1059,15345,15344,2135,2315,5052,8018,13966,4193],"class_list":["post-130524","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arkansas","category-avian","category-brown-headed-cowbirds","category-sebastian-county","tag-appetite","tag-birdbath","tag-brown-headed-cowbird","tag-cowbird","tag-cowbirds","tag-dive","tag-feeder","tag-gluttonous","tag-gorging","tag-immature","tag-molothrus-ater","tag-porky","tag-ravenous","tag-seeds","tag-summer-3","tag-sunflower","tag-urban","tag-yard","tag-young"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/brown-headed-cowbird-immature-mia-mcpherson-6552.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-xXe","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":70937,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/06\/17\/female-brown-headed-cowbird-in-a-serviceberry\/","url_meta":{"origin":130524,"position":0},"title":"Female Brown-headed Cowbird In A Serviceberry","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"June 17, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Three days ago one of the birds that the Song Sparrows chased off was an adult female Brown-headed Cowbird that landed on a serviceberry in front of me.","rel":"","context":"In "Beaverhead County"","block_context":{"text":"Beaverhead County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/montana\/beaverhead-county-montana\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Female Brown-headed Cowbird perched in a Utah Serviceberry, Wasatch Mountains, Morgan County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-female-serviceberry-mia-mcpherson-6004.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-female-serviceberry-mia-mcpherson-6004.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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with willow catkins, East Canyon, Wasatch Mountains, Morgan County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-female-willows-mia-mcpherson-0846.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-female-willows-mia-mcpherson-0846.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-female-willows-mia-mcpherson-0846.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-female-willows-mia-mcpherson-0846.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 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Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-6572.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-6572.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-6572.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-6572.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":91671,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2021\/07\/05\/male-brown-headed-cowbird-displaying\/","url_meta":{"origin":130524,"position":3},"title":"Male Brown-headed Cowbird Displaying","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"July 5, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Brown-headed Cowbird breeding activity hasn't slowed down yet high in the Wasatch Mountains if this displaying male is any indication of their mating attempts.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Brown-headed Cowbird male displaying, Wasatch Mountains, Summit County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-male-displaying-mia-mcpherson-7230.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-male-displaying-mia-mcpherson-7230.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-male-displaying-mia-mcpherson-7230.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, 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Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-upside-down-mia-mcpherson-5178.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-upside-down-mia-mcpherson-5178.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-upside-down-mia-mcpherson-5178.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/brown-headed-cowbird-upside-down-mia-mcpherson-5178.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8005,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2013\/04\/01\/breaking-news-the-worlds-first-brown-cowbird-x-painted-bunting-hybrid\/","url_meta":{"origin":130524,"position":5},"title":"Breaking News: The World’s first Brown Cowbird x Painted Bunting Hybrid!!","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 1, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"From the plumage pattern, the bill, shape of the bird, colors and the bright red eye ring I was able to ID this fine feathered friend as the world's first Brown Cowbird x Painted Bunting hybrid ever!!","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/04\/painted-bunting-cowbird-hybrid-mia-mcpherson-1880.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/04\/painted-bunting-cowbird-hybrid-mia-mcpherson-1880.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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