Skip to main content

Giant Cowbird

Molothrus oryzivorus
The Giant Cowbird is indeed a large bird... at least when you compare it to other members of its genus. They can grow well over a foot long, dwarfing the 8 or so inches that the others reach.

Like it's relatives though, the giant Cowbird does practice brood parasitism. They lay their eggs in the nests of other bird species-- typically Oropendolas and Caciques. It can be rough finding a suitable nest to lay in, as their host birds tend to nest in very large group and can be quite aggressive about their territory.

There is a difference between the male and female Giant Cowbirds. The males are just a few inches longer in body size, and their feathers are more iridescent. They also sport a neck ruff that is absent in females.

Many other Cowbirds do, in fact, ride along on cows while in search of insect meals. Not this Cowbird! They are not often found on Cattle, but in some places you can see them riding on Capybaras!
IUCN Status : Least Concern
Location : South and Central America
Size : Length up to 14in (36cm)
Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Aves -- Order : Passeriformes
Family : Icteridae -- Genus : Molothrus -- Species : M. oryzivorus
Image : S. Romany

Labels

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bornean Orangutan

The Bornean Orangutan is one of two extant Orangutan species in the world. It is the third largest primate (after Gorillas) and is the largest primarily tree-dwelling animal in the world. Males are substantially larger than females, and average at around 165lbs. Bornean Orangutans are largely solitary. A handful might live within a small range but they will seldom interact with one another. Males and females only meet up to breed, which happens only once every several years. A young Orangutan will stay with it's mother for about five years, and the females tend to go about eight years between births. That is the longest interim period of any animal! Sadly, the Bornean Orangutans are in a lot of trouble. They need large forests in order to thrive, and deforestation and habitat degradation has left many homeless. They are also hunted for meat and for traditional medicines. Conservation areas are being established to help these guys in the wild, and it is believed that there are a...
59 comments
Read more

Four!

For anyone who was counting, yesterday was our birthday-- four years! Four years filled with animals from A to Z, more than 1,100 of them! I can't thank my readers enough, it's been wonderful! And in celebration of that milestone... I'm taking a break. Hopefully not forever, but for a little bit at least. In the mean time I plan on getting a new layout out, along with some updates to some of the older articles. I'll post updates here and on the Facebook page, I'm also brainstorming some new animal-related projects, so keep an eye out! Thanks again for four awesome years!
18 comments
Read more

Banggai Cardinalfish

Pterapogon kauderni The Banggai Cardinalfish is a small tropical fish that is becoming very rare in the wild, even though it has been successfully bred in captivity. You will only find these small, 3in long fish around the Banggai Islands of Indonesia. They are the only members of their genus, and you can tell them apart from other Cardinalfish by their three-striped bodies, tasseled first dorsal fin, long second dorsal, and their deep-forked tail fins. Banggai Cardinalfish are diurnal and live in small groups of about a dozen members. They are opportunistic feeders who dine on whatever smaller plants and animals they can find. Courtship and mating is pretty interesting for these guys-- females are the ones who initiate. They isolate a male and the pair will perform various courtship rituals before spawning. The Cardinalfish are mouthbrooders, which means that the males take the fertilized eggs (up to 90 of them) into their mouths and incubate them for up to 30 days. During t...
37 comments
Read more