Thread by @TLWforCumbria

Scary THREAD.

I wasn't sure at first, but this beautiful bird is a young starling. One of #thelostwords

Starlings have declined by 66% since I was born. They're now red-listed as 'high conservation concern'.
I sat under 250,000 of them once.
But I loved seeing this new one.

They were back this morning, two of them.
I can't see so well now, so wasn't sure what I was looking at here. Nor was my camera it seems.
Then that sinking feeling.

As well as photography, I'm also useless at DIY.
Although I have some tools, that I bought optimistically (from Woolworths) when we got first married.
Some are still in their packaging.

I'm not sure if it was just very calm or couldn't move.
The pliers couldn't cut the metal. Or the wire cutters.
Bea covered its head with a tea towel which made this tricky.
We went outside to cool down.
The starling started to shout (for help, I suppose).
It grabbed my thumb.

I clipped enough to crow it open but I couldn't see where the bird crossed with the wire and worried about broken wings or legs. Or it getting impaled. I couldn't get it out.

Bea ran off and came back with her jewellery making kit...

Which worked better than my unused toolkit. It flew well, over the hedge and into our neighbour's rowan trees.

I don't often get the chance to do something useful or that matters. It feels really good.

I've now got a queue of birds wondering where their fat balls have gone.

Here's another of my poor photos - some of the 250,000 I sat under, one winter eve.

Then two also taken in Cumbria, but by a 'proper' photographer, Rosamund Macfarlane.

And the starling spell from The Lost Words by Jackie Morris & Robert Macfarlane.

Have a starling weekend!