"The Starling"

Comments appreciated...pretty birds but not welcome at feeders, they

are very agressive and outright bully's...

Very well done.

Mary Fran, I don't think this could be any better, tack sharp, great DOF, nice background, a twig diagonally through the frame and then the colors on that bird; fantastic. Regards, Dieter (7/7 anon)

Bless you Deiter :), I've waited a long time for a clean shot of one of these with some color.

Nasty bird for sure, and you even managed to capture it wearing a mean looking expression! I agree with Dieter: this is an oustanding portrait both tecnically and artistically. The cold colors are a real plus...they add sinister ambience.

Wanted to give a 7/7 but wasn't allowed. Very nice!

Nice looking Greaser! the colors really pop. Good job. Regards, B.

Thanks Tommy and Gordon, really appreciate it. Tommy, it's the thought that counts :) I went to the feeder on Friday and to my surprise a Blue Jay let me approach very close. At first I thought his feet were frozen in the ice, but then he flew off. I later saw him again and realized he was indeed injured, missing an eye. I blame these guys, they showed up in numbers after the ice storm, so as happy as I am to have gotten this shot, still heartbroken over that Jay. Didn't see him yesterday so I assume he didn't make it.

Excelente imagen de gran belleza, perfecta luz, color y un magnifico encuadre, excelente fondo neutro, saludos cordiales Mary Fran.

Absolutely lovely. Everything so complementary. Great image. 6/6

 

It's not Mr Starling's fault that a human brought his ancestors from Europe. He is trying to survive, too. The scrub jays I have in my yard will not allow starlings to stay. The scrub jays also do not like my finches, chickadees, grosbeaks, and red-shouldered hawks. But I still love these feisty birds anyway. I have to keep a peanut feeder way in the back to distract them from the other small bird feeders, which they still terrorize on occasion. Nasty thoughts could aslo radiate toward the Great Egret who came by one day and decimated my fish pond -- some of those fish were 20 years old. He musta been hungry to brave the presence of two dogs lolling on the king-sized bed at the back of the house. So don't think too badly of immigrant birds, it's all they know. And this guy is beautiful!

Thanks William, sorry about the fish, at least I didn't know the Jay personally. I'm going through bird seed like you can't imagine since the ice storm, but there's no need for fighting as there's plenty for all. Now only if I could "tweet" that out to them :)

Un fondo haciendo juego con el plumaje del ave ,donde podemos apreciar el detalle del mismo , saludos

Can't rate yet, but it is one of the best. Clean sevens.

I haven't seen that many of these birds, but I really like the way you've captured this one! The color and detail are great, and I like the way the bird fits in against the background! Good job!

William told me about this starling picture and so i decided to have a look at your portfolio. This is incredible! I love your birdpictures.

About the starling: they also come in my garden but they aren't very agressive and they come along with the robins and other little birds.

If you are interested, you can fin'my starling' here: http://www.photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=5552960

 

Best regards from the Netherlands,

Thanks Marga, I like yours! In the US they and sparrows are some of the only wild birds that some states allow you to keep as pets, however, if you handle these guys the oils in your skin will damage their feathers. Just a tid bit I picked up after rescuing a baby sparrow and having to raise it. All the rehab sites covered sparrows and starlings together. So funny you stopped by today as I took several shots of one today, first I've gotten since this, not sure how they'll come out though.