Species: Sturnus vulgaris

European Starling
Species

    Articles:

    Marine and terrestrial bird indicators for Puget Sound

    A December 2013 report identifies marine and terrestrial bird species for use as indicators within the Puget Sound Partnership's "Vital Signs" for ecosystem health. 

    Black Scoter (Melanitta nigra). Photo by Dave Menke, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
    Kingdom
    Animalia
    Phylum
    Craniata
    Class

    Aves

    Order

    Passeriformes

    Family

    Sturnidae

    Genus

    Sturnus

    Classification
    Other Global Common Names
    Estornino Pinto - étourneau sansonnet
    Informal Taxonomy
    Animals, Vertebrates - Birds - Perching Birds
    Formal Taxonomy
    Animalia - Craniata - Aves - Passeriformes - Sturnidae - Sturnus - Considered conspecific with S. UNICOLOR by some authors and constitutes a superspecies with it (AOU 1983, 1998).
    Migration
    true - true - false - Resident throughout most its range, but some individuals migrate (mid-February to early March, late September to November).
    Non-migrant
    true
    Locally Migrant
    true
    Food Comments
    Approximately half of its diet is insects; feeds on weevils, cut-worms, beetles, grasshoppers, ants, etc. Also feeds on other invertebrates; spiders, millipedes, earthworms, and snails. Consumes a wide variety of fruits and grains. Avoids high-sucrose fruits (Avery et al. 1995).
    Reproduction Comments
    Clutch size 4-9 (usually 5-7). Incubation by both sexes in turn, 12-15 days. Altricial, downy nestlings fed by parents for 20-22 days (Harrison 1978). One to 3 broods per year. Female may lay egg in nest of another starling. Polygyny and communal breeding have been documented (see Pinxton et al., 1994, Auk 111:482-486).
    Ecology Comments
    Nonbreeding: often gathers in large roosts. Often occurs in large mixed flocks with black-birds, cowbirds, and grackles (in summer and fall in northeastern U.S., Caccamise et al. 1983). <br><br>Commonly usurps the nest sites of native cavity-nesting birds (e.g., bluebirds, woodpeckers). However, an examination of Christmas Bird Count and Breeding Bird Survey data found that few, if any, native species have showed significant declines that could be attributed to starling competition. Only sapsuckers exhibited declines potentially attributable to starlings that were not countered by other data (Koenig 2003).
    Length
    22
    Weight
    85
    NatureServe Global Status Rank
    G5
    Global Status Last Reviewed
    1996-12-03
    Global Status Last Changed
    1996-12-03
    Other Status

    LC - Least concern

    Conservation Status Map
    <img src="http://www.natureserve.org/explorer/servlet/GetMapGif?CA.AB=SE&CA.BC=SE&CA.LB=SE&CA.MB=SE&CA.NB=SE&CA.NF=SE&CA.NT=SE&CA.NS=SE&CA.NU=SE&CA.ON=SE&CA.PE=SE&CA.QC=SE&CA.SK=SE&US.AL=SE&US.AK=SE&US.AZ=SE&US.AR=SE&US.CA=SE&US.CO=SE&US.CT=SE&US.DE=SE&US.DC=SE&US.FL=SE&US.GA=SE&US.ID=SE&US.IL=SE&US.IN=SE&US.IA=SE&US.KS=SE&US.KY=SE&US.LA=SE&US.ME=SE&US.MD=SE&US.MA=SE&US.MI=SE&US.MN=SE&US.MS=SE&US.MO=SE&US.MT=SE&US.NN=SE&US.NE=SE&US.NV=SE&US.NH=SE&US.NJ=SE&US.NM=SE&US.NY=SE&US.NC=SE&US.ND=SE&US.OH=SE&US.OK=SE&US.OR=SE&US.PA=SE&US.RI=SE&US.SC=SE&US.SD=SE&US.TN=SE&US.TX=SE&US.UT=SE&US.VT=SE&US.VA=SE&US.WA=SE&US.WV=SE&US.WI=SE&US.WY=SE" alt="Conservation Status Map" style="width: 475px; height: auto;" />
    Global Range
    Native to Eurasia; introduced in the U.S. in New York City in 1890. Now breeds from southeastern Alaska, across southern Canada, south through most of U.S. to southern Mexico; also in Bahamas, Cuba, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico (very local in the late 1980s). Periodically reported from St. Croix, Virgin Islands. Reported casually in Hawaii.
    ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.103906