Shiny Cowbird Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesShiny Cowbird
Male
Chunky with a conical bill. Males are glossy black overall.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryChrist Church, March 01, 2018Female
Medium-sized bird with a conical, sharply pointed bill. Females are tan overall with a faint paler eyebrow.
© Marco Valentini / Macaulay LibraryCiudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, August 31, 2012Female
Note the fairly long, thick-based bill that comes to a sharp point, characteristic of cowbirds.
© Timothy Barksdale / Macaulay LibraryBuenos Aires, December 11, 1996Not all videos have sound
Juvenile
Juveniles are dull brown with a streaky belly.
© Mark Kosiewski / Macaulay LibraryRisaralda, August 16, 2014Male
Song is a bubbling purring, followed by an ascending series of short, high notes.
© Gregory Griffith / Macaulay LibraryFlorida, May 09, 1994Not all videos have sound
Female
Chunky bird with a conical bill. Females are tan overall and have little to no streaking on the belly.
© Steven Mlodinow / Macaulay LibraryAruba, April 07, 2013Adult
Often feeds in mixed flocks of other blackbirds on the ground or in trees and shrubs.
© Jay McGowan / Macaulay LibraryGuárico, November 02, 2010Habitat
Found in open or semiopen habitats, especially agricultural areas with patches of trees and shrubs.
© Matías Garrido 🐧 / Macaulay LibraryValparaíso, January 24, 2017Similar SpeciesBrown-headed Cowbird
Adult male
Adult male Brown-headed Cowbirds have a brown head whereas adult male Shiny Cowbirds have a shiny black head.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, March 17, 2008Similar SpeciesBrown-headed Cowbird
Female
Female Brown-headed Cowbirds have a whitish throat and fine streaking the breast whereas female Shiny Cowbirds have tan throat and little to no streaking on the breast.
© Arlene Ripley / Macaulay LibraryArizona, July 02, 2017Similar SpeciesRusty Blackbird
Breeding male
Rusty Blackbirds are larger than Brown-headed Cowbirds and have a uniformly dark head and body unlike the Brown-headed Cowbird, which has a dark body and brown head.
© Daniel Jauvin / Macaulay LibraryQuebec, May 12, 2017Similar SpeciesBronzed Cowbird
Adult male
Male Bronzed Cowbirds are larger and have a red eye whereas Shiny Cowbirds have a dark eye.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryTexas, April 20, 2011Rotate Your Device to Better Compare
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Species in This Family
Troupials and Allies(Order: Passeriformes, Family: Icteridae)
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