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Brown-headed Cowbirds as migrants




Whether or not Brown-headed Cowbirds are winter-resident depends on what
area of the Carolinas you are in.  In SC, the large flocks of blackbirds -
Common Grackle, Red-winged Blackbird, Brown-headed Cowbird - are restricted
to the Coastal Plain.  It has been my experience that all three species are
absent from the Piedmont in November and December.  Here where I am in the
lower Piedmont, Common Grackles and Red-winged Blackbirds return in late
January or early February and Brown-headed Cowbirds return usually on the
first of March.    While I suppose technically January is the "winter
season", I consider them the first of the "spring migrants" to return to
their breeding grounds.

 
Donna Bailey
Winnsboro, SC
e-mail: dsbailey@conterra.com
URL: http://www.conterra.com/dsbailey
     "Where are the Birds?  Migration across South Carolina"