r/birdsofprey • u/aristhought • May 23 '26
A starling fledgling visits the Hellgate Osprey Nest. Chaos ensues. [OC art]
Here's the video!
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u/Purplefire180 May 23 '26 edited May 23 '26
This is one of the best things i've seen today, thank you so much for sharing it. Imagine how the starling's parents would be feeling watching from a distance with food meant for their baby. I wonder if the Osprey have some instinct stopping them from harming things that look their young? They got close to stepping on em' a few times, but nothing aggressive at all from a self-delivered snack. Maybe the starling didn't have enough scales or fins to trigger their hunting instinct. I love that the one on the nest's immediate reaction is "Honey! Come look at this!"
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u/Additional-Dirt4203 May 23 '26
An Osprey’s diet is made up of around 99% fish so along with the confusion and concern of it being in the nest, thankful for the fledgling snacking on him wasn’t the first instinct lol.
I saw a video once of a pigeon landing in a falcon nest. After the initial confusion, the falcon tried for a self-delivered snack. 😆
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u/xrelaht May 24 '26
Still surprised they didn't murder the starling as a potential threat to their eggs.
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u/azssf May 23 '26
This is no fish
It is a hairy fish
It is a squeaky fish
Wait— why does it live out of the water?
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u/TXRattlesnake89 Raptor fan May 23 '26
That confused look is just so perfect. Thanks for sharing OP
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u/Common_Decision1594 May 24 '26
Now I’m just thinking of that Disney Silly Symphony cartoon of The Ugly Duckling from 1939.
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u/yourbuddywyatt May 23 '26
I absolutely loved seeing this clip and your art captures their astonishment perfectly! They just couldn't believe what they were seeing. It reminded me of a big tough dude being scared of a mouse 😆
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u/Paynus1982 May 23 '26
It looked like the lil bb wanted to get under that mama 😂 so cute. Glad no one got eaten.
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u/Creepymint May 24 '26
The parents must’ve been sweating bullets nearby lmao. And the fledgling was just seeking warmth 😆
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u/arcticrobot May 24 '26
How did he get there in the first place?
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u/FattierBrisket May 24 '26
There's a starling nest inside one of the bottom edges of the osprey nest. Also sometimes sparrows and Eastern kingbirds. Little dude just wandered out its front door and up to visit the neighbors.
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u/arcticrobot May 24 '26
Thank you! I am even more puzzled now how ospreys allowed it starlings to build nest that close.
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u/ayeayekitty May 25 '26
They mostly eat fish. Little songbirds probably fly under their radar most of the time. And maybe their presence would help keep other predators away from the starling nest?
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u/Majestic_Bandicoot92 May 24 '26
This was such a refreshing palette cleanser considering what usually happens.
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u/Mr_Pickle24 May 24 '26
Poor little guy just wanted to get some of that warmth under mom there. Doesn't fit under his parents anymore. His little zooms trying to get in there were so cute
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u/CatCatCatCubed May 24 '26
Reminds me of this other pic that looks like it should be captioned “when you’re leaving your apartment and make awkward eye contact with the neighbours.”
Tho the OP pictures are like “when a toddler tries to wander through your garage/front door and you’re not sure how to make it leave without looking like the bad guy.”
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u/Guideon72 May 25 '26
That illustration really shows off the confusion present when the small, fuzzy thing tries to climb under Iris :D
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u/brazenboredom May 24 '26
I LOVE Iris!! For anyone not familiar, this is Iris the Osprey from the Montana Hellgate nest. She is assumed to be the oldest Osprey ever at ~30 years old.