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Common starlings are both monogamous and polygamous ; although broods are generally brought up by one male and one female , occasionally the pair may have an extra helper . Pairs may be part of a colony , in which case several other nests may occupy the same or nearby trees . Males may mate with a second female while ... |
= = = Breeding = = = |
Breeding takes place during the spring and summer . Following copulation , the female lays eggs on a daily basis over a period of several days . If an egg is lost during this time , she will lay another to replace it . There are normally four or five eggs that are ovoid in shape and pale blue or occasionally white , a... |
Incubation lasts thirteen days , although the last egg laid may take 24 hours longer than the first to hatch . Both parents share the responsibility of brooding the eggs , but the female spends more time incubating them than does the male , and is the only parent to do so at night when the male returns to the communal... |
Intraspecific brood parasites are common in common starling nests . Female " floaters " ( unpaired females during the breeding season ) present in colonies often lay eggs in another pair 's nest . Fledglings have also been reported to invade their own or neighbouring nests and evict a new brood . Common starling nests... |
= = Predators and parasites = = |
A majority of starling predators are avian . The typical response of starling groups is to take flight , with a common sight being undulating flocks of starling flying high in quick and agile patterns . Their abilities in flight are seldom matched by birds of prey . Adult common starlings are hunted by hawks such as t... |
More than twenty species of hawk , owl and falcon are known to occasionally predate feral starlings in North America , though the most regular predators of adults are likely to be urban @-@ living peregrine falcons or merlins ( Falco columbarius ) . Common mynas ( Acridotheres tristis ) sometimes evict eggs , nestling... |
Common starlings are hosts to a wide range of parasites . A survey of three hundred common starlings from six US states found that all had at least one type of parasite ; 99 % had external fleas , mites or ticks , and 95 % carried internal parasites , mostly various types of worm . Blood @-@ sucking species leave thei... |
The hen flea ( Ceratophyllus gallinae ) is the most common flea in their nests . The small , pale house @-@ sparrow flea C. fringillae , is also occasionally found there and probably arises from the habit of its main host of taking over the nests of other species . This flea does not occur in the US , even on house sp... |
Flying insects that parasitise common starlings include the louse @-@ fly Omithomya nigricornis and the saprophagous fly Camus hemapterus . The latter species breaks off the feathers of its host and lives on the fats produced by growing plumage . Larvae of the moth Hofmannophila pseudospretella are nest scavengers , w... |
Common starlings may contract avian tuberculosis , avian malaria and retrovirus @-@ induced lymphomas . Captive starlings often accumulate excess iron in the liver , a condition that can be prevented by adding black tea @-@ leaves to the food . |
= = Distribution and habitat = = |
The global population of common starlings was estimated to be 310 million individuals in 2004 , occupying a total area of 8 @,@ 870 @,@ 000 km2 ( 3 @,@ 420 @,@ 000 sq mi ) . Widespread throughout the Northern Hemisphere , the bird is native to Eurasia and is found throughout Europe , northern Africa ( from Morocco to ... |
Common starlings in the south and west of Europe and south of latitude 40oN are mainly resident , although other populations migrate from regions where the winter is harsh , the ground frozen and food scarce . Large numbers of birds from northern Europe , Russia and Ukraine migrate south westwards or south eastwards .... |
Common starlings prefer urban or suburban areas where artificial structures and trees provide adequate nesting and roosting sites . Reedbeds are also favoured for roosting and the birds commonly feed in grassy areas such as farmland , grazing pastures , playing fields , golf courses and airfields where short grass mak... |
= = = Introduced populations = = = |
The common starling has been introduced to and has successfully established itself in New Zealand , Australia , South Africa , North America , Fiji and several Caribbean islands . As a result , it has also been able to migrate to Thailand , Southeast Asia and New Guinea . |
= = = = South America = = = = |
Five individuals conveyed on a ship from England alighted near Lago de Maracaibo in Venezuela in November 1949 , but subsequently vanished . In 1987 , a small population of common starlings was observed nesting in gardens in the city of Buenos Aires . Since then , despite some initial attempts at eradication , the bir... |
= = = = Australia = = = = |
The common starling was introduced to Australia to consume insect pests of farm crops . Early settlers looked forward to their arrival , believing that common starlings were also important for the pollination of flax , a major agricultural product . Nest @-@ boxes for the newly released birds were placed on farms and ... |
= = = = New Zealand = = = = |
The early settlers in New Zealand cleared the bush and found their newly planted crops were invaded by hordes of caterpillars and other insects deprived of their previous food sources . Native birds were not habituated to living in close proximity to man so the common starling was introduced from Europe to control the... |
= = = = North America = = = = |
After two failed attempts , about 60 common starlings were released in 1890 into New York 's Central Park by Eugene Schieffelin . He was president of the American Acclimatization Society , which tried to introduce every bird species mentioned in the works of William Shakespeare into North America . About the same date... |
= = = = Polynesia = = = = |
The common starling appears to have arrived in Fiji in 1925 on Ono @-@ i @-@ lau and Vatoa islands . It may have colonised from New Zealand via Raoul in the Kermadec Islands where it is abundant , that group being roughly equidistant between New Zealand and Fiji . Its spread in Fiji has been limited , and there are do... |
= = = = South Africa = = = = |
In South Africa , the common starling was introduced in 1897 by Cecil Rhodes . It spread slowly and by 1954 had reached Clanwilliam and Port Elizabeth . It is now common in the southern Cape region , thinning out northwards to the Johannesburg area . It is present in the Western Cape , the Eastern Cape and the Free St... |
= = = = West Indies = = = = |
The common starling was introduced to Jamaica in 1903 , and the Bahamas and Cuba were colonised naturally from the US . This bird is fairly common but local in Jamaica , Grand Bahama and Bimini , and is rare in the rest of the Bahamas , eastern Cuba , the Cayman Islands , Puerto Rico and St. Croix . |
= = Status = = |
The global population of the common starling is estimated to be more than 310 million individuals and its numbers are not thought to be declining significantly , so the bird is classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as being of least concern . It had shown a marked increase in numbers through... |
Major declines in populations have been observed from 1980 onward in Sweden , Finland , northern Russia ( Karelia ) and the Baltic States , and smaller declines in much of the rest of northern and central Europe . The bird has been adversely affected in these areas by intensive agriculture , and in several countries i... |
= = Relationship with humans = = |
= = = Benefits and problems = = = |
Since common starlings eat insect pests such as wireworms , they are considered beneficial in northern Eurasia , and this was one of the reasons given for introducing the birds elsewhere . Around 25 million nest boxes were erected for this species in the former Soviet Union , and common starlings were found to be effe... |
Common starlings introduced to areas such as Australia or North America , where other members of the genus are absent , may affect native species through competition for nest holes . In North America , chickadees , nuthatches , woodpeckers , purple martins and other swallows may be affected . In Australia , competitor... |
Common starlings can eat and damage fruit in orchards such as grapes , peaches , olives , currants and tomatoes or dig up newly sown grain and sprouting crops . They may also eat animal feed and distribute seeds through their droppings . In eastern Australia , weeds like bridal creeper , blackberry and boneseed are th... |
The large size of flocks can also cause problems . Common starlings may be sucked into aircraft jet engines , one of the worst instances of this being an incident in Boston in 1960 , when sixty @-@ two people died after a turboprop airliner flew into a flock and plummeted into the sea at Winthrop Harbor . |
Starlings ' droppings can contain the fungus Histoplasma capsulatum , the cause of histoplasmosis in humans . At roosting sites this fungus can thrive in accumulated droppings . There are a number of other infectious diseases that can potentially be transmitted by common starlings to humans , although the potential fo... |
= = = Control = = = |
Because of the damage they do , there have been attempts to control the numbers of both native and introduced populations of common starlings . Within the natural breeding range , this may be affected by legislation . For example , in Spain , this is a species hunted commercially as a food item , and has a close seaso... |
Huge urban roosts in cities can create problems due to the noise and mess made and the smell of the droppings . In 1949 , so many birds landed on the clock hands of London 's Big Ben that it stopped , leading to unsuccessful attempts to disrupt the roosts with netting , repellent chemical on the ledges and broadcasts ... |
Where it is introduced , the common starling is unprotected by legislation , and extensive control plans may be initiated . Common starlings can be prevented from using nest boxes by ensuring that the access holes are smaller than the 1 @.@ 5 in ( 38 mm ) diameter they need , and the removal of perches discourages the... |
Western Australia banned the import of common starlings in 1895 . New flocks arriving from the east are routinely shot , while the less cautious juveniles are trapped and netted . New methods are being developed , such as tagging one bird and tracking it back to establish where other members of the flock roost . Anoth... |
In the United States , common starlings are exempt from the Migratory Bird Treaty Act , which prohibits the taking or killing of migratory birds . No permit is required to remove nests and eggs or kill juveniles or adults . Research was undertaken in 1966 to identify a suitable avicide that would both kill common star... |
= = = In science and culture = = = |
Common starlings may be kept as pets or as laboratory animals . Austrian ethologist Konrad Lorenz wrote of them in his book King Solomon 's Ring as " the poor man 's dog " and " something to love " , because nestlings are easily obtained from the wild and after careful hand rearing they are straightforward to look aft... |
The common starling 's gift for mimicry has long been recognised . In the medieval Welsh Mabinogion , Branwen tamed a common starling , " taught it words " , and sent it across the Irish Sea with a message to her brothers , Bran and Manawydan , who then sailed from Wales to Ireland to rescue her . Pliny the Elder clai... |
Mozart had a pet common starling which could sing part of his Piano Concerto in G Major ( KV . 453 ) . He had bought it from a shop after hearing it sing a phrase from a work he wrote six weeks previously , which had not yet been performed in public . He became very attached to the bird and arranged an elaborate funer... |
Common starlings are trapped for food in some Mediterranean countries . The meat is tough and of low quality , so it is casseroled or made into pâté . One recipe said it should be stewed " until tender , however long that may be " . Even when correctly prepared , it may still be seen as an acquired taste . |
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