Bird Cam: Female Starling

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here we have the female Starling. They're an invasive species to the US, so despite being pretty we are not a fan. Birders label them a "nuisance bird" and we call them bully birds since they come in swarms, muscle out all the others and eat up all the food. Whenever we can we chase them off. Of course the cowbird is also considered a nuisance bird since it does kind of the same thing, but we give them more of a pass since they actually belong here. Not the starling's fault of course, they're just doing what nature tells 'em to, but in large enough numbers they can cause real harm to other bird species, as invasive animals are wont to do. In some places there are bounties on them for that reason.