Monday 22 April 2013

Starlings.......................................................... beautiful birds to see up close

I have a pair of Starlings that have become regular visitors to my garden.

Starling (Sturnus vulgaris).
They are nesting in my neighbours roof space... thankfully not mine.

They were enjoying the meal worms I put out for them.

I feed them by my patio doors... it gives me the opportunity to see them up close.

It was a shame it was such a dull day...
...a bit of sunshine would have shown off more of their iridescent plumage.

Starlings aren't everyone's cup of tea... but I really love seeing them.


21 comments:

TexWisGirl said...

they are beautiful! love their little heart-shaped patterns on their bellies.

Carole M. said...

good thinking Drew to drop those mealworms nearby where you can view the starlings up close. It's really nice that you admire these birds for who they are ...and yes, good they're not in you're roof.

Bob Bushell said...

Lovely Starling images Andrew.

Dan said...

A curious bird with an appetite... and fun to watch.

Karen said...

Starlings get a bad rap, but I think they are quite beautiful. I have heaps of them in my yard this spring, and I am enjoying seeing their multicoloured feathers shine when the sun hits them a certain way.

Brian King said...

Great shots! They're beautiful in the sunlight! You can take ours back if you'd like. They displace our native birds and take over nesting sites. Trade you for the squirrels? :-)

Cezar and Léia said...

Busy little one!And you got great close ups!I'm enchanted by the bird in your header, so cute! :)
purrs and love
Luna - We love Luna and mommy Léia

eileeninmd said...

They are pretty, just a nuisance. great shots!

Unknown said...

Beautiful colours!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

Indrani said...

I have a few shots of these birds taken during my Europe tours. I find them beautiful.
Great shots!

The Herald said...

Nice to see Andrew, I bet they made short work of those meal worms...lol!...[;o)

Anna said...

Gorgeous captures of the starlings, Andrew!
Love those oil colors of them...
Warm greetings from Holland,
Anna

Anonymous said...

They are really pretty. You caught their detail so nice. Most people around here treat them like crows and pigeons.

Kenneth Cole Schneider said...

Nice close shots of rlings. Sometimes it is easy not to notice how beautiful such a common bird may be.

HansHB said...

Awesome photos!

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

They do have lovely colors.

Arija said...

Even on a dull day, their markings are quite spectacular. Just wait when there are 20-50 of them nesting in all you neighbours and your roof as well.
For some 10 years we had them nesting in the roofs of our horse shelters. By the score they get to be just a tad too much.

Stewart M said...

Meal worms are a real hit - we had an over supply of them when I was still a science teacher and the magpies (a sort of butcher birds, rather then a crow) in my garden loved them!

Cheers and thanks for linking to WBW

Stewart M - Melbourne

Andrea @ From The Sol said...

I have a small flock of Starlings that visit my feeders all winter and I enjoy them ... and I agree with the right lighting they can be beautiful. In the spring, however, my little flock becomes a very big flock and they devour all of my seed, peanuts and suet bullying the rest of the smaller birds out. Then I don't like them so much. I do know that they are just doing what it takes to survive, so I don't hold a grudge, but I do feel badly for my little birds ... Great pictures :)

Andrea @ From the Sol

Rosemary Aubut said...

Beautiful photos! Never seen these birds photographed so well!

Sharon Whitley said...

I agree that starlings are stunning birds when you look properly at them - I sometimes get flocks of them coming into the garden and there is a pair nesting in my neighbours roof too!