All juvenile animals have to learn by trial and error what’s safe to eat. The young house sparrow in these pictures seemed to be still quite low on the learning curve. It grabbed the violet ground beetle that scurried within easy reach, then almost instantly dropped it (second picture from top). Some beetles exude foul-tasting fluids when they’re assaulted; I don’t know whether this species does or whether it was just its wriggling that made the sparrow drop it. Its assailant persisted and after further struggles the unfortunate beetle became a crunchy meal for a hungry sparrow.
Posts
