We have a very small backyard in Bethesda, Montgomery County.  This afternoon we had our largest ever flock of Brown-headed Cowbirds -- 48 birds, along with some Common Grackles, European Starlings, and a male Red-winged Blackbird.  We've done Project FeederWatch through Cornell since 1988, and the largest number we've ever seen before is 12 Cowbirds.  Most years we only saw a couple of Cowbirds a few times during the winter.

Jim Nelson
Bethesda, MD