Interesting Facts about Starlings (The best of from: Wikipedia):
- Starlings are medium-sized passerines.
- Scientific classification
- The shortest-bodied species Kenrick’s starling (Poeoptera kenricki) has 15 cm.
- The lightest-weight species Abbott’s starling (Poeoptera femoralis) has 34 grams.
- The largest secies the Nias hill myna (Gracula robusta) has 36 cm and 400 grams.
- There are 25 species.
- The plumage of the starling is often brightly coloured due to iridescence; this colour is derived from the structure of the feathers, not from any pigment.
- Starlings imitate a variety of avian species and have a repertoire of about 15–20 distinct imitations. Starlings have also been known to imitate other man-made environmental sounds, such as phone boxes and cars.
- The diets of the starlings are usually dominated by fruits and insects.
- The starlings are generally a highly social family. Most species associate in flocks of varying sizes throughout the year.
- A flock of starlings is called a murmuration. These flocks may include other species of starlings and sometimes species from other families. This sociality is particularly evident in their roosting behaviour; in the non-breeding season some roosts can number in the thousands of birds.
Source of the Starling photo: keywordhut.com.
Look this… it is amazing:
During the winter you may be lucky enough to see a starling murmuration. These flocks gather in the evening and perform amazing aerobatic displays before dropping into their favoured roost sites. Flocks provide safety in numbers for birds returning to roost as predators find it hard to target individual birds. In addition, they benefit from the warmth of other birds and the opportunity to exchange information.
Have you ever seen a murmuration? If you have, you would know it. Seeing hundreds — even thousands — of starlings flying together in a whirling, ever-changing pattern is a phenomenon of nature that amazes and delights those lucky enough to witness it.
Source of the Featured Image: alaindelorme.com.