Bird of the Day, theme 'Cutie'

natureJul 6, 202624013,145

Bird of the Day is a daily community event; today's prompt is #Cutie, asking contributors for cute bird captures. The gallery features fledglings, ducklings, shorebird chicks, and small passerines in intimate moments, plus patient hunters framed under the alternate tag #TheWaitingGame. Standout entries include a Vermillion Flycatcher photographed at White Sands National Park, a mama mallard with her brood, and a recently fledged Eastern Screech-Owl taking a bath. Look for cygnets cuddling with siblings, a snowy plover running on the beach, and young ospreys waiting in their nest.

Nature, Preserved

@simonecannon.bsky.social

A Vermillion Flycatcher, White Sands National Park, New Mexico, USA. These cute "sit-and-wait" predators catch flying insects in mid-air and have adapted amazingly well to human-modified habitats like parks and golf courses #BirdoftheDay #Cutie #TheWaitingGame #NaturePhotography

155645d ago

hildewithers.bsky.social4

We have a pair year 'round! S.E. Arizona! Saw my very first one in 1997 at The San Pedro River, my life bird as we lived in Vermont back then. What a treat!

eagledare2.bsky.social2

Love it! Great color! Such Beauty in our wildlife. The main reason to PROTECT IT!! Thanks for sharing!

greenmazza.bsky.social2

That is an incredibly stunning bird!

DonOffie2

I have several flycatchers in my woods. Among them Scissor Tailed Flycatchers, Eastern Phoebes and the Eastern Wood Peewee. They are fascinating to watch and photograph. Although not as vibrant as a Vermillion Flycatcher.

willfulchipmunk.bsky.social2

Beautiful, so bright red. I'd love to see one in person!

death2tyrants2024.bsky.social2

We're just across the way in CA. Fly on by!

Lecia Michelle

@leciamichelle.bsky.social

Today’s #BirdOfTheDay theme is #Cutie. Mama mallard duck and her babies.❤️ #birds #photography #birdsofbluesky

Female mallard duck perched on a flat boulder with her ducklings huddled under her. A lake and boulders in the background.

80644d ago

Kacey3252

This pic came up on my TL and I immediately knew it was you! What a wonderful photo!💜 I love this! My favorite duck and her babies.🥰🦆

Christina Evans

@christinae.bsky.social

A recently-fledged Eastern Screech-Owl (Megascops asio) taking a bath in the backyard. If that isn't a #cutie I don't know what is! #BirdoftheDay #birds #owl #Florida #backyard

A young, fuzzy-headed Eastern Screech-owl, with wide pale yellow eyes and large black pupils, is sitting in a shallow pond of water while taking a bath. The pond has pebbles in it and is surrounded by gray flat slate rocks, some bare wood branches, and on the left is a lacy maidenhair fern. The adorable owl is warm reddish brown with some dark streaks and some light breast feathers.

53044d ago

NorCal Lynne2

How precious and heartwarming. Thank you for providing an environment with water for wildlife. 💙

Sandra Aamodt2

So darling - great shot!

Eric Olson Photography2

Cute indeed! Great photo, Christina. 👍

Blue Girl ✊❌👑1

"do you MIND?!? I'm bathing!!" 🙀

2thess.bsky.social1

He looks embarrassed being all naked like that 😮

Mouse of the West1

La Belle Hibou Sans Merci

Alan H

@alan678.bsky.social

Good morning. Sorry won’t be around much till the evening as getting some work done on the house. Today’s #BirdOfTheDay theme is #Cutie, cute bird captures. Alt #TheWaitingGame Patience rewarded, whether by bird or photographer. A fledgling Stonechat in the rain. #birds #photography #ECK

A small juvenile European Stonechat perches on the top strand of a weathered barbed-wire fence, its soft, fluffy plumage puffed out against the cool air. The young bird’s mottled brown and buff feathers are finely patterned, with delicate streaking across its head and back, while its short tail rests lightly on the twisted wire. It gazes to the right with a bright, alert eye as a few faint raindrops drift through the frame. The background is a smooth wash of muted green, creating a calm, natural setting that draws attention to the bird’s intricate feather detail and quiet, watchful pose.

49445d ago

Bill Stedman2

Cute indeed, and you show patience waiting out in the rain for the capture! Hope the house is shaping up quite nicely 🏡

Neil Cameron2

Noice! Nearly as cute as me. No, there aren't any mirrors in my house. No, I don't get out much. Yes, when I do go out of the house children throw stones at me. Yes, those children run off screaming. How could you possibly have guessed all that?

Atlantic Birding1

Nice shot Alan; I think you can see how they’re cousins of Robins in the juveniles particularly

𝒥𝒶𝓃𝑒1

Cute indeed 🥰 have a good day Alan

Sharon R.1

Aww, I love this little chubby cutie, Alan!

Sharon1

Good morning, Alan. Small but beautifully formed, like me 😂 Very cute 🪶🐦‍⬛ Have a good Monday 🏡

Rina

@rina2012.bsky.social

Welcome to the world, little one 🥰 "Today’s #BirdOfTheDay theme is #Cutie, cute bird captures. Alt #TheWaitingGame" #birds #birding #BirdsSeenIn2026 #Germany #wildlife #photography #nature #thelittlethings #ECK

A young coot, photographed from the side, is making its first attempts at swimming. Its head is still bare and red, with fine, bristling yellow down. Its body is covered in grey, fluffy feathers. One foot can be seen in the clear water; they are very large in proportion to the bird’s body size.

29645d ago

June chat perché²1

How curious and cute he is ! Have a great day Rina !

Aj d'Wit (Audrey)1

Awwww … definitely cute. 🥰 Young life is simply grand.

Doug Engstrom1

Very cute. Is that a baby coot?

雪乃しずく（shizukuxuenai）1

What a cute baby 🥰💞 Perfect, Rina 🫶

Kevin Wertman

@kevin.wertman.org

Ever seen a black-bellied whistling duck whistling? 🎶 #BirdOfTheDay #Cutie #MallardMonday #BlueSkyMonday #Photography #Birds #Ducks

A single black-bellied whistling duck stands at the top of a broken off palm tree stump, its head is raised into the air and beak slightly open. It is whistling. Behind is clear blue skies.

26245d ago

LaffingKat1

I have not! Great shot!

Bill Stedman

@steddybirds.bsky.social

Young ospreys sitting in their nest play #TheWaitingGame with one parent as they look for the other parent to return with a fish. Photo taken with long lens after very slowly sneaking close enough in a kayak. #BirdOfTheDay #birds #ospreys #birdphotography #conservation #audubon #raptors #ECK 🪶

Three young ospreys in the Massachusetts Audubon Allen’s Pond Wildlife Sanctuary in Dartmouth MA wait in the nest with one parent, patiently waiting for the other parent to return with a fish. The parent sits on the perch at right. The nest is built on a manmade platform in an area that was one of the first to bring back ospreys after DDT nearly killed them all off on the east coast in the 1960s and 70s before “Silent Spring” woke everyone up to the dangers of pesticides.

25844d ago

Br0knoldswampuh1

They built those nest platforms in my state, so the birds wouldn't use the power lines towers. I had a pair on my mail route that returned every year. The male would return first, then the female much later.

Studly Elasticwaistpants1

And I bet that 1 or 2 will bitch about there not being enough tartar sauce.

Charlie Ludwig

@chuck4242.bsky.social

Our local Barred Owls have been active lately. This one moved around to five different locations last night between my yard and my neighbor's. #BirdOfTheDay #TheWaitingGame #Birds #Birding #Wildlife #Nature #Photography #Animals #Photos #Photo #ECK

A Barred Owl using a tree's dead limb as a perch.

25544d ago

Jeffrey The Cat1

What a great picture! The owl on that twisted dead branch! Team Nature!

Dave Meredith

@davemeredith.bsky.social

Today's alternative #BirdOfTheDay theme is #TheWaitingGame. A male Common Kingfisher waiting for a stickleback to appear. #Cheshire #ECK #photography #birds #nature #wildlife #Fujichrome #1990s #ManualFocus

21545d ago

Clouds 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿1

Some birds are too beautiful to be real

Rosemarie1

Fabulous Dave! What a beautiful bird!

Den 🇮🇪

@denterrick.bsky.social

For Alan's #BirdOfTheDay theme we've got #TheWaitingGame, patience rewarded, whether by bird or photographer. A heron's patience eventually rewarded #Photography #10MinutesFromHome #Birds #Heron #EastCoastKin #Dublin #Ireland

A grey heron standing in our local lake, its patience eventually rewarded with a little snack. I've wanted to catch a shot like this for some time so required some patience on my part too, which is not something I'm especially good at. 🙂

20544d ago

Sparty®1

Brilliant capture mate. And you've caught it feeding - bonus 👊🏼

linda2.bsky.social

@linda2.bsky.social

For me, they do not come any more cute than a cygnet. This one is slepping and using siblings as a pillow! #UKWildlife #BirdOfTheDay #Cutie #Cygnet #birdphotography #photography #ECK

A cygnet embrassing the safety and warmth of siblings by resting head on their warm bodies. They are grouped close to their parent.

18044d ago

Alec2

I took this in Durham, England

Lesley1

Such a fabulous capture of those many downy colouration tones and details, as well as that awwww so delightful snoozing face. :)

Antikrish (UTFR MUFC) 🇾🇪1

What lens did you use here Fishy, if I may ask. It's such a beautiful image.

Rina1

So cute indeed, Linda 🥰

Eine rosa Rose1

Oh my goodness, that’s so cute Linda 🫠

Shantha Mohan, Ph.D., DTM1

🫂🫶🏼 I agree! Have a great rest of the day and week, Linda!

James Petruzzi

@hawaiianimages.bsky.social

For today's #BirdOfTheDay theme, #Cutie here's a matched pair of very young Ae'o just learning their way around Kealia Pond NWR. Staying close to the security rock LOL (turns out they needed it, a bit later a Black-crowned NH made a circle and they did hide behind that rock) #birds 🦉🌿📷

Two Ae'o chicks with little fuzzy grey bodies, white bellies and enormous legs for their sized partially behind a small rock in the middle of Kealia Pond NWR

15744d ago

Brett "Solidarity 2026" Banditelli5

YOU STAY AWAY, HERON!!!!! *cries*

Chris S1

Funny, that looks like the same “security rock” as in 2023 pics! So it’s earned its name. The Ae’oets know! 😉🪶❤️

Dr Rebecca Warren

@drrjwarren.bsky.social

#ArtDD2026 Goldcrest For #BirdoftheDay's #Cutie, from a lovely 📷 by @atlanticbirding.bsky.social with thanks. @saocousins.bsky.social @holnicotenh.bsky.social @andykaitken.bsky.social @stevecobbin.bsky.social @indikon.eurosky.social @mayfieldbirder.bsky.social

Watercolour of small buff-coloured bird on a brank, facing the viewer and looking slightly to the left. It has a sharp little beak and a vivid yellow strip between two black stripes over the top of its head.

18044d ago

HLK

@hlkfotos.com

The #BirdOfTheDay theme is #Cutie. 📷🌿🪶🦆

A close-up photo of a young mallard duckling (Anas platyrhynchos) floating on blue water on a sunny day. It has golden yellow fuzzy down feathers all over it, with dark brown markings including a stripe across its eye and a fuzzy dark cap on top of its head. It's facing toward the left of frame with its bill slightly open and an alert brown eye peering toward the camera. A few of its small duck siblings are just visible in the foreground and background on the right.

16244d ago

WhatABeautifulWorld2

Beautiful photo and utterly cute baby!!!

Neil Cameron2

Now there's cute, and then there's too f**king cute! I can even hear the voice.

Den 🇮🇪1

Certainly fits the bill. Ridiculously, outlandishly cute. Lovely shot!

Eric Olson Photography1

You definitely understood the assignment. 😊

Doug Engstrom1

You hit the theme with that one.

Kort Duce

@kortduce.bsky.social

A female yellow-headed blackbird showing her beauty at a nature area in Longmont, Colorado. #BirdOfTheDay #Cutie #ECK #bird #birds #birdphotography #BirdsSeenln2026 #wetland #wetlands #blackbird #blackbirds #nature #wildlife #wildlifephotography

Photo by Kort Duce

A female yellow-headed blackbird showing her beauty at a nature area in Longmont, Colorado.

In this vertical color photograph, a female yellow-headed blackbird fills the frame as she faces the camera with her head turned slightly to her right, revealing the left side of her face. Her neck is stretched out and her feathers slightly puffed. The blackbird is perched on a rounded wooden fence rail. The background is softly blurred, with cattails in varying shades of green creating a natural backdrop.

A beautiful portrait of a female yellow-headed blackbird strutting her stuff.

14045d ago

tenslady1939.bsky.social1

Color & texture! Perfect. Only nature can do this. Humans try. Never quite get it.

seatbelt-fastened.bsky.social1

I've never seen one of these. Are they 'newer' to the area?

Bird of the Day, theme 'Cutie'nature

Bird of the Day, theme 'Cutie'

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