Alberto Fantoni's Image

Alberto visits the same meadow every spring, where he knows fieldfares gather to feed on earthworms. Lying flat on the grass, he witnessed this particular ‘cartoon scene’. The fieldfare was pulling and then pausing, dislodging the worm bit by bit, but not using so much force as to snap it and leave half a meal behind.

Fieldfares are gregarious thrushes that forage for invertebrates on the ground. Earthworms are their main food source during spring and summer, so they must harvest enough to stay alive. Normally, a bird will pull out a worm in one go. But, in this case, the earthworm hung on, contracting its body underground to anchor itself with the tiny bristles that line its body.