Everybody's gotta eat

Caught this moment while watching Surfbirds and Turnstones pull edibles off the rocks of Humboldt Bay's south jetty. This is a popular spot for birds and man alike to go fishing--starfishing in the case of the gulls. I must admit, the first time I saw a gull doing this, I thought it was in big trouble. Biting off more than he could chew, as it were. Yet I've seen it happen nearly every time I've visited the jetty since. Apparently it just takes some time for both the gull's throat and the recently abducted seastar to relax enough for the whole thing to get down the gull's gullet. Equally visually ridiculous is the point at which the star passes fully through its mouth and creates an obvious star shape in the gull's throat.