CreatureData

Brown-headed cowbird

Molothrus ater (Boddaert, 1783)

LCLeast Concernsongbirds

The brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) is a species in the family Icteridae, order Passeriformes. Recorded adults weigh 37.3 g to 47.5 g and live up to 16.9 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater)
Photo: Rhododendrites · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the brown-headed cowbird

Weight
37.3 g – 47.5 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
16.9 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Invertivoresrc for Diet
Longest recorded lifespan
16.9 years
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
forestsrc for Habitat
Egg incubation
11.3 dayssrc for Egg incubation
Young per litter or clutch
4.3src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
12 monthssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
1src for Litters or clutches a year
Lifestyle
Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Migratorysrc for Migration
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Photos of the brown-headed cowbird

Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.

Brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater)
Rhododendrites · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Where does the brown-headed cowbird live?

Not recorded

What is the brown-headed cowbird?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) is a small, obligate brood parasitic icterid native to temperate and subtropical North America. It is a permanent resident in the southern parts of its range; northern birds migrate to the southern United States and Mexico in winter, returning to their summer habitat around March or April.

From the Wikipedia article “Brown-headed cowbird” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Brown-headed_cowbird&oldid=1383498886), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the brown-headed cowbird endangered?

The brown-headed cowbird is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species. What the categories mean.

How is the brown-headed cowbird classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderPasseriformes
  5. familyIcteridae
  6. genusMolothrus
  7. SpeciesMolothrus ater (Boddaert, 1783)

Synonyms Emberiza pecoris, Fringilla pecoris, Icterus pecoris, Molothrus pecoris, Muluthrus ater, Oriolus ater

Other names and names in other languages (48)
  • Cow buntingEnglish
  • Cow-pen birdEnglish
  • شحرور البقر بني الرأسArabic
  • شُحرُور البَقر بُنيّ الرأسArabic
  • vaquer de cap bruCatalan
  • vlhovec hnědohlavýCzech
  • aderyn gwartheg penfrownWelsh
  • Brunhovedet KostærDanish
  • BraunkopfkuhstärlingGerman
  • Braunkopf-KuhstärlingGerman
  • Κοινό ΓελαδοπούλιGreek
  • brunkapa bovikteroEsperanto
  • Tordo cabecipardoSpanish
  • Tordo cabeza caféSpanish
  • piisoniturpialEstonian
  • lehmäturpiaaliFinnish
  • Vacher à tête bruneFrench
  • Lon bóIrish
  • שחרורית חומת-ראשHebrew
  • smeđoglavi čvorkašCroatian
  • barnafejű gulyajáróHungarian
  • KúastarliIcelandic
  • Molotro testabrunaItalian
  • vaccaro testabrunaItalian
  • コウウチョウJapanese
  • Rudagalvis karviaganisLithuanian
  • rudagalvis karvapaukštisLithuanian
  • brūngalvas govjputnsLatvian
  • BruinkopkoevogelDutch
  • brunhovudtrupialNorwegian Nynorsk
  • brunhodetrupialNorwegian
  • Agajidassig’ginak (asikinaak)Ojibwa
  • starzyk brunatnogłowyPolish
  • chupim-mulatoPortuguese
  • Chopim-mulatoPortuguese
  • vaqueiro-de-cabeça-castanhaPortuguese
  • Буроголовый коровий трупиалRussian
  • Коровий трупиалRussian
  • RuškesoaitrupiálaNorthern Sami
  • zanášač čiernySlovak
  • rjavoglavi kravarSlovenian
  • Crna kravaricaSerbian
  • brunhuvad kostareSwedish
  • Pasbaş inek kuşuTurkish
  • Boz başlı inekkuşuTurkish
  • вашер буроголовийUkrainian
  • 褐头牛鹂Chinese
  • 褐頭牛鸝Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List

Relatives of the brown-headed cowbird

Other species in the same genus Molothrus.

CompareBrown-headed cowbird vs Shiny cowbirdBrown-headed cowbird vs Screaming cowbirdBrown-headed cowbird vs Bronzed cowbirdBrown-headed cowbird vs Giant cowbird

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the brown-headed cowbird?

An adult brown-headed cowbird weighs 37.3 g – 47.5 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the brown-headed cowbird endangered?

The brown-headed cowbird is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

How long does the brown-headed cowbird live?

The brown-headed cowbird has a recorded lifespan of 16.9 years.

What kind of animal is the brown-headed cowbird?

The brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) belongs to the family Icteridae in the order Passeriformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/brown-headed-cowbird

MLA

“Brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/brown-headed-cowbird.

BibTeX
@misc{brown_headed_cowbird_2026,
  title = {Brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/brown-headed-cowbird},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}