Females search alone for host nests in three ways.
Sometimes they sit quietly in shrubs or trees and watch for nest building. In areas away from perches cowbirds walk on the ground, watching out for breeding a ctivities in other birds. Finally in dense vegetation they make short and noisy flights, landing on the leaves and flapping their wings to flush hosts from their nests. 15 Most nests are parasitized during the host laying period. Nevertheless, cowbirds often seem to get their timing wrong.