Birdseye

Urban wood has a lot of character: streaks of color known as ambrosia; burl, which is essentially tree scar tissue; and birdseye, a distinctive pattern that looks like tiny, swirling eyes.

Bryan Starr, 35, told investigators he was driving near Fort Mitchell, Ala., when 5-year-old Austin Birdseye started to become “unruly” inside the vehicle.

It was unclear how much time passed before Birdseye wandered onto the busy Highway 165 near County Road 24, where he was struck around 8 p.m.

Bryan Starr, 35, surrendered to officials in Russell County after being charged in the death of Austin Birdseye, Sheriff Heath Taylor told a news conference Monday.

He and the child’s mother, Christina Birdseye, 33, share a home in southeast Alabama near the sprawling base.