Woman Sees A Very Happy ‘Baby Bird’ Then Quickly Realizes He’s Not What He Seems

“[I] wondered why it wasn’t flying away” 😂

While hiking through Popran National Park in Australia, nature enthusiast Kym Beechey had a moment she won’t soon forget. Armed with her camera and a love for wildflowers, Beechey was slowly making her way along the trail — the kind of hiker who takes her time soaking in the scenery, not chasing fast-moving wildlife.

But on this particular day, she thought her luck had changed.

“The birds are normally far too quick for me to capture, so when I spied what I thought was a baby tawny frogmouth (an owl-like bird) sitting low on a limb, I was super excited,” Beechey told The Dodo.

The small creature looked like it was smiling — a rare, heartwarming sight. Beechey quickly grabbed her phone, zoomed in to snap the perfect photo, and prepared for the victory of finally capturing one of Australia’s elusive native birds.

That’s when reality hit.

“It wasn’t until I focused the photo and wondered why it wasn’t flying away that I realized it was, in fact, just a banksia pod,” Beechey admitted. “Just a cute, adorable banksia pod.”

Banksia trees, native to Australia, are known for their quirky-looking seed pods — often rugged, woody, and oddly expressive. This particular pod had character, and enough charm to completely fool a seasoned nature lover into believing it was a cheerful little bird.

Despite the case of mistaken identity, Beechey wasn’t disappointed. In fact, she was delighted.

Even though the “baby bird” turned out to be a fraud, Beechey found joy in the surprise. She laughed at herself, captured the moment, and added the amusing photo of a not-actually-a-bird to her collection of wildflower snapshots.

Some days in nature offer more than what you expect — even if it’s not what it first seems.