Sky-dance of Starling Bird

 MURMURATION

                                                   

Starling flocks can number thousands, and their sky-dances are mesmerizing to watch. These are called murmurations. Looking almost like a swarm of locusts, they change directions as a unit, with no pattern or thought, just instinctively ebbing and flowing in the sky. No one knows for sure why this happens, but this may be to protect them from hawks, merlins and falcons.  At dusk, smaller foraging groups join and roost for the night in this flying sanctuary, leaving no "in" for predators. 

      

                                             

 THE EUROPEAN STARLING

                                              

                                                       

Let's get to know our little immigrant:

COMMON NAME: European Starling.

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Sturnus vulgaris. Sturnus: Starling. Vulgaris: Common. 

ORDER: Passeriformes

FAMILY: Sturnidae

 

These stout little flyers are the size of blackbirds with short square-shaped tails. In flight their wings look translucent.

In the summer the adults have glossy black feathers with iridescent pinks, greens and reds and little star-shaped dots, essentially looking like a starry night. The dots disappear come winter. 

            

                                           

The female starlings looks less glossy and shiny than the male opposites. To differentiate between the two, look at their bills: it depends on their diet which effects the coloring, but the females have pinker bills while the males have blueish bills. I guess their baby-showers also have pink and blue gifts!

The juveniles look completely different with a gray-brown plumage.

  

                                        

The normal lifespan of a starling is around 15 years. The oldest Starling recorded reached the ripe old age of 22 years and 11 months! That really says something about their survival skills. 

WHAT DO STARLINGS EAT?

Starlings, like blackbirds, have gaping abilities. Gaping is the bird's ability to open its bill forcibly against some pressure, so it can, for example, push its bill into the base of a grass clump and forcibly open it to reveal the insects that may be hidden inside.

Their diverse diet includes insects, (natural pesticides,) spiders, grains, worms, fruit, and seeds as well as feed livestock feed and garbage.

Starlings are attracted to seed and suet feeders, but they can prevent smaller birds from approaching. 

STARLING LOVE 

Starlings are mainly monogamous, although males have been seen to change mates between broods. 

Mating begins in late February all the way through June. The male digs out a nesting site and places dried leaves, moss or lichen inside and then for the final touch, adds herbs to repel insects!  Smart little thing. He even decorates the nest with flowers to attract the females. (One step short of a candle lit dinner!) Now that's some fancy nest building!

Once he has built the nest, comes the waiting. 

When the female finally comes along, he flaps and waves his wings, sings a merry tune and flies in and out of the nest with leaves or flowers in his mouth. 

                                                                

Once pairing has been successful, the two feed and build the nest together. The female actually throws the flowers away, hopefully not hurting the male's feelings, and adds a few touches of her own - mainly grass, to make the nest as cozy as possible for her upcoming incubators.

                                                   

Starlings are extremely aggressive, often taking the nests of bluebirds or purple martins. They can choose an abandoned Woodpecker's nest or even a cavity inside houses or buildings. 

Starlings lays 4 to 5 beautiful pale turquoise eggs which are incubated for about 12 days by both the male and female during the day. At night, the female takes over.

Both male and female take the task of feeding the young'un. After 21-23 days the little ones leave the nest and the parents move on the the next brood! Starlings raise up to 3 broods each season, using the same nest. This explains the huge number of starlings which have flourished since 1890, as well as their long life span. It's all about flying in flocks

Sounds

Starlings are loud and noisy, especially in groups, but singularly have a beautiful chirp which is a series of rattles and whistles, sometimes mimicking other bird species.