Swede’s Photographs on Nostr: It's tough out there. I saw this European startling (Sturnus vulgaris) on a light ...

It's tough out there.

I saw this European startling (Sturnus vulgaris) on a light pole in Galveston, Texas. I've seen one of these before, but never where I live. This one looks a bit weathered, but still dazzling. I believe this is a nonbreeding adult.

"Starlings turn from spotted and white to glossy and dark each year without shedding their feathers. The new feathers they grow in fall have bold white tips – that’s what gives them their spots. By spring, these tips have worn away, and the rest of the feather is dark and iridescent brown. It’s an unusual changing act that scientists term “wear molt.”" - allaboutbirds.org

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