Dunedin resident Mal Parker has been feeding the birds in his backyard for years, but recently he has seen a new addition to the flock - a starling with an abnormally long beak.
The starling, who Mr Parker has dubbed "BB" or "Big Beak", had been at the bird feeder in his backyard over the last two weeks trying to get a bite out of whatever treat was left out.
"I don’t think he can eat an apple - it’s a bit too hard for him.
"But we put a cheese scone out the other day and he had a go at that," Mr Parker said.
He had noticed the way the bird ate was a little odd, as he would turn his head sideways and "scrape his head along the side of the scone".
Mr Parker had been feeding the birds at his address for more than 50 years, and had seen a bird like BB only once before - last year.
"I’m wondering if he might be the same bird. I think maybe he is a couple years old."
University of Otago professor of zoology Bruce Robertson said it was most likely the same bird Mr Parker had seen before.
"It’s a very rare occurrence, so it’s most likely the same bird," Prof Robertson said.
He said if a person saw a bird with a deformity like BB’s more than once, it was most likely not causing much of a problem for them.
"Starlings are quite smart and they are into probing into the ground, so in some ways this might not be a disadvantage," he said.
Mr Parker said last time he had seen BB, the bird looked well-fed, and was a "big boy".
He was looking forward to catching a glimpse of the rare bird next time he came to get his cheese scone.
