Rare visitor causes panic at Thurso bird feeder
What appeared at first to be a common magpie or starling is now believed to be a very unusual visitor to a garden feeder in Thurso.
Stephen Lay, who lives at Wolfburn Road near Scrabster, noticed the strange looking bird at his garden feeder over the last week and took some photographs to help identify it.
"My neighbour saw a picture of the bird and thought it was a magpie," said Stephen. "On closer inspection I realised it was smaller, with a shorter tail, and the markings were different."
He said that the bird had a light pinkish colour on its front and back flanked by an oily blue/black iridescent colour to the wings and on its head.
"I also noticed it was the same size as the common starlings visiting my garden – having the same coloured legs and beak shape. It did not fly with the other starlings and when it was near them on the feeder it had to fend them off.
"At first I thought it was a common starling that may have a pigmentation disorder but after checking I found a picture on a bird spotting site that was identical to my bird."
Stephen said the details suggested it was an adult male rosy starling (Pastor roseus) which is usually found in the area from North West China to the Balkans and overwinters in the India to South East Arabia area.
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3 / 3"There have been a few sightings as far west as France and on the very odd occasion in England – birds coming across from Europe. This is why I thought your readers, especially the twitchers reading your newspaper, may be interested in this exceptionally rare sighting in Caithness."
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Starling with plumage abnormality captured on camera
