# European Starling

Scientific name: Sturnus vulgaris

Bird group: [starling](https://birdsofpuertorico.com/family/starling)

Canonical source: https://birdsofpuertorico.com/bird/234/European-Starling

## Identification

The common starling or European starling (Sturnus vulgaris), also known simply as the starling in Great Britain and Ireland, is a medium-sized passerine bird in the starling family, Sturnidae. It is about 20 cm (8 in) long and has glossy black plumage with a metallic sheen, which is speckled with white at some times of year. The legs are pink and the bill is black in winter and yellow in summer; young birds have browner plumage than the adults. It is a noisy bird, especially in communal roosts and other gregarious situations, with an unmusical but varied song. Its gift for mimicry has been noted in literature including the Mabinogion and the works of Pliny the Elder and William Shakespeare.
  A young juvenile perching on a table in London. Its plumage is mainly grey-brown

## Distribution and habitat

The European Starling is native to Eurasia and North Africa, and 
in the West Indies it has been 
introduced or colonized from 
nearby source populations to 
The Bahamas, Jamaica, Puerto 
Rico, and the Virgin and Cayman 
Islands (Raffaele and others 
1998). It primarily inhabits open 
lowland areas, pastures, and 
gardens (Raffaele and others 
1998). The atlas fieldwork 
yielded a total of three records 
within one hexagon or 0.2 
percent of the 479 total hexagons 
(see map). Breeding was 
confirmed in the only hexagon 
(100 percent) where this species 
was found (see map). 

## Breeding

Previously published reports indicate that the European 
Starling breeds from April to 
June (Raffaele and others 1998). 
The nest is built in a cavity 
or at the base of palm fronds 
(Raffaele and others 1998). 
Atlas fieldwork yielded three 
records (one of which confirmed 
breeding in December), all in the 
same hexagon in Fajardo in the 
subtropical moist forest life zone 
(see map and table). During 
the Fajardo Christmas Bird 
Counts, seven individuals were 
observed in 2007, one individual 
was reported in 2009, six were 
reported in 2010, and none have European Starling distribution. The map shows the highest breeding code by hexagon and overlaying the ecological life zones in 
Puerto Rico. Note: percentages may not total 100 due to rounding.       225European Starling/Estornino Pintobeen recorded in subsequent years through 2019 (Cornell University 2020).

## Conservation

The European Starling is currently listed as a species 
of least concern by the IUCN 
(BirdLife International 2016). 
The species may have failed 
to successfully establish on 
Puerto Rico given absence of recent observations. Locally, 
this species is not listed in any 
of the threatened categories of 
PRDNER and USFWS. In Puerto 
Rico, the European Starling has 
a protected habitat in land of 
33 percent or 8 km2 of the total area covered by the hexagons 
where evidence of breeding was 
found for this species (24 km2). 

Photo: https://birdsofpuertorico.com/static/images/webp/in_234_Im0.png.webp

Distribution map: https://birdsofpuertorico.com/static/images/webp/in_234_Im1.png.webp

Source note: Text is reproduced from this site's published record. Historical conservation statements and taxonomy have not been independently revalidated. See https://birdsofpuertorico.com/about for source credits and limitations.