Bronzed Cowbird on Creosote
by Judy Kennedy
Title
Bronzed Cowbird on Creosote
Artist
Judy Kennedy
Medium
Photograph - Photo
Description
This is a male of this fascinating species (Bronzed Cowbird, Molothrus aeneus), because he has red eyes and iridescent plumage, unlike the female. He was perched on a creosote bush (aka chaparral) probably in between his flamboyant courtship displays with sounds reminiscent of rounded water drops filling up a glass bottle. Both species of Cowbird (Bronzed and Brown-Headed) are brood parasites, meaning that they lay their eggs in the nests of other bird species, leaving the new parents to raise the cowbird chicks, often at the expense of their own offspring. This photo was taken on June 18, 2011, in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona about 50 miles south of Phoenix. Watch this video (Cowbird Love Triangle) about two rivals competing for a female: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1znquZuV4Jk&t=150s
Uploaded
October 1st, 2019
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