Molothrus bonariensis
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The shiny cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis) is a passerine bird in the New World family Icteridae. It breeds in most of South America except for dense forests and areas of high altitude such as mountains. Since 1900 the shiny cowbird's range has shifted northward, and it was recorded in the Caribbean islands as well as the United States, where it is found breeding in southern Florida. It is a bird associated with open habitats, including disturbed land from agriculture and deforestation.
Adults are sexually dimorphic. Males are all black with a purple-blue iridescence. The female is smaller, with dull brown plumage that is sometimes paler on the underparts. Females of the species can be distinguished from the female brown-headed cowbird by their longer, finer bills and flatter heads. The shiny cowbird's diet consists mainly of insects, other arthropods and seeds, and they have been recorded foraging for grains in cattle troughs.
Like most other cowbirds, it is an obligate brood parasite, laying its eggs in the nests of many other bird species such as the rufous-collared sparrow. Different host species show different responses to their nests being parasitised, with behaviours ranging from accepting and caring for the cowbird eggs, to rejecting the eggs from the nest. As the shiny cowbird is an effective generalist brood parasite, it can be considered the South American counterpart to the brown-headed cowbird. Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Montevideo | 🇺🇾 Uruguay | |
| 2 | Mendoza | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 3 | Santiago | 🇨🇱 Chile | |
| 4 | Asuncion | 🇵🇾 Paraguay | |
| 5 | Buenos Aires | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 6 | Bogota | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 7 | Curitiba | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 8 | Cordoba | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 9 | Brasilia | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 10 | Rosario | 🇦🇷 Argentina |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bioparque Wakatá | 🇨🇴 Colombia |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Shiny Cowbird sighting in Maracaibo on a given day, based on 92 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 23rd most-seen of the 89 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January and February
In those months about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Shiny Cowbird in Maracaibo on a given day, against about 10% in April, June–August and November, the lowest months. Those are among Maracaibo's driest months, with about 5 mm of rain a month against 130 mm in October.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Shiny Cowbird sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
20th of 43
Of the 43 cities where we can rate Shiny Cowbird sightings, Maracaibo ranks 20th at about 20%. The best odds are in Montevideo (Uruguay, about 60%), Mendoza (Argentina, about 60%) and Santiago (Chile, about 60%).
Same family: Icteridae
The closest relatives of the Shiny Cowbird that you can see in Maracaibo (family Icteridae, New World Blackbirds and Orioles) are Carib Grackle (about 80%) and Yellow Oriole (about 40%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Shiny Cowbird is recorded against all the birds logged in Maracaibo (92 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
