Brown-Headed Cowbird Game

Written by our Lead Nature Educator: Brittany Huber

Many of the games that we play at Wild Bear are created to illustrate a concept found in nature. Through this form of performance, we are able to make connections and understand the world around us in a deeper way than only reading about it in a book or watching a video. Also, it’s fun!

In this Cowbird Game, Wild Bears pretend to be songbird and cowbird babies who must chirp for attention from a generous and hardworking mama songbird.

HOW TO PLAY:

1. Mama bird throws food- in this case, bugs were replaced with pumpkin seeds from last fall’s carvings- at the babies’ open mouths which are represented as cups and bowls on top of their heads. 

2. The cowbird baby is given a larger bowl than the songbirds and is instructed to chirp louder than all the others, while the mama bird is told to pay special care to the noisiest babies. At the end of the round, we compare who has gotten the most food and then switch roles and play again.

In reality, cowbird babies are usually larger and noisier than their songbird nest mates, often receiving more food from the songbird parents.

Before European expansion into the Great Plains, cowbirds followed the bison and ate the many insects swarming around the bison’s dung and on the trampled ground. Their unique strategy as a nest parasite supported their nomadic lifestyle- as they traveled they would leave eggs in songbirds nests. In recent years, cowbird populations have expanded while songbird populations have declined. Forest fragmentation- already a factor negatively impacting songbird populations, has led to more access to nests on the forest edges for the cowbirds. It’s a rough life for a songbird!