Cowbird Mondays

Oh you didn't hear about it? You didn't get the memo? Yeah, it's definitely a thing.
Slender, small, and without a pleasing call, these birds are very few people's favorites. They are also brood parasites, so they lay their eggs in other birds nests and thus largely pass on the parenting responsibilities, even at the expense of the other bird's eggs. There is supposedly documentation of Cowbirds conning Hummingbird and Raptors nests.
If ever this bird were to get it's own exclusive bird post, it would have to be on a Monday, coupled with all the other un-favorite things.

Despite their commonness around large, manicured grassy areas, the Brown-headed Cowbird is not a bird I photograph often or even very well. Yesterday I was able to snag a few shots of these unwelcome birds hanging out in one of my parents' trees. The photo below was taken by my younger brother too, who aided in the stake-out.

There's not a lot to say in their favor, though of course being birds they have a certain amount of coolness and impressiveness built into them. At least that bill would give a Grosbeak a run for its money. Somebody has to be the unpopular one I guess. The Cowbirds play the part of jerks so others don't have. Or maybe they just like it.

Mondays: Morose and Morbid

As we get closer and closer to summer, it seems harder and harder to make it through each week. Somehow, it seems like time slows down, and yet we still don't have enough time to get everything done. Instead of being chipper and trying to lift spirits, here is a presentation of some blackbirds I've seen lately, come to commiserate with us minions of Monday.

I don't see them too often, so it's refreshing when there's a Brown-Headed Cowbird out in the woods. But this bird is brown, black, and doesn't have the same iridescence or colorful eyes as other blackbirds or cowbirds. He's got the Mondays every day of the year.

The Black-Tailed Gnatcatcher isn't so dark a bird. He tries to put on a bold face, tries to bounce around with great energy and cheerfulness, much like we do with our Monday morning coffee. Do not be fooled by his optimistic showing. Deep in those eyes you can see the remorse of a bird that knows full well he can never escape his dark shadow...

Even among Hummingbirds, there are the comparably muted species. This Black-Chinned Hummingbird is still handsome, but is perhaps the least colorful of the family. He knows it too...

It's a treat to see the little ring of purple, but can only be done as the bird's face disappears in darkness. Such a sad trade-off.

If there's one bird that really makes black look good, it's probably the male Phainopepla. This bird weathers Mondays better than most of us, perhaps because he has awesome hair.

But as you can see, this bird is always seeing red, and at times he will lash out--usually against small bugs and such.

Even the handsome Phainopepla can sometimes be overwhelmed. When he realizes that it's only Monday, he is known to let out a shout of dismay, much like the rest of us. Unlike the rest of us, this shout has the added bonus of attracting females.

The Redwing Blackbird is a resilient bird. He knows that Mondays are hard, but he has a nice lunch break to anticipate. Here, he's chowing down on cattails. You can see how the stalk is nibbled away like an ear of corn right up to the bird's right foot.

All lunch breaks come to an end. As he realizes his happy eating time is over and he must get back to the grindstone, the Red-Winged Blackbird feels the same dismay as the Phainopepla, the same dismay that can be found, from time to time, inside us all.

Eh, maybe I'm exaggerating. Monday's aren't too bad. I guess the worst part is just that they mean I won't be able to go birding again for a while.

Happy Monday. Have a good week y'all!