Birds have the ability to fly for a long time and are very active everywhere. Most of them live in the forest, and only a few - in settlements, closer to humans. Watching the behavior and habits of birds is a very pleasant experience. If you are interested in knowing what kind of starling you are looking for, then read this article.
How to distinguish among other birds
Often we hear the singing of different birds, but we don’t know who this sweetens our hearing. Few, for example, know what starlings look like. Photos in the article will help you distinguish these birds among others. These birds inhabit the flat terrain.
What do starlings look like? It is a small bird in size. Its length is from 20 to 25 cm, and weight is not more than 100 grams, the physique is dense. The tail is short, consisting of 12 tail feathers, wings are of moderate length, legs are strong. The bird has a long and sharp beak. Depending on the season, its color changes. Starlings in the spring go with a yellow beak, and by autumn it begins to blacken. They usually have a dark color with a greenish and reddish tint. When autumn comes, white feathers can be seen on the feathers of this bird, with the advent of spring they disappear.
By external signs, you can determine who is in front of you - male or female. The beak of males has a bluish spot. At the female in this place you can see a red spot. The young starling has a black beak, and its plumage is brown. In nature, you can find a pink starling. In the spring, his body turns pink, his tail, head and wings remain black. By autumn, the plumage of the starling again becomes brown with the presence of pink and yellow tide.
Starlings are birds of temperate latitudes, roaming or settled. They fly very quickly, easily and quickly. At the same time, there is noise from the wing wing. Now, knowing what starlings look like, you can watch them, this is a very interesting activity.
Common starling as a separate species
In nature, there are 100 species of these birds. But on all continents common starling is found. This is a separate species of the starling family. His homeland is the western regions of Asia and Europe. Usually these birds do not migrate in winter. From the northeastern regions, they fly south only if there is a chance of severe cold weather.
Common starling during the nesting period forms colonies in which there are usually several pairs of birds. They settle from each other at a distance of 10 to 15 meters. These birds tend to move in packs. It may have several dozen individuals.
Starlings feed on plant foods, insects and can even eat the waste left by people. They prefer to get food directly in the air or on the ground. This bird takes out earthworms and larvae from the ground with its beak. Starlings are very fond of fruits, berries, seeds and vegetables. They can very cleverly tear open garbage bags with their beaks to eat leftover food.
Behavior and habitat
Starlings move well along the reed stalks and tree branches. Sinking to the ground, they walk leisurely. When they look for food, they begin to incline their head continuously, turning right and left. These birds are not bad singers. They have a loud, slightly creaky voice. They tend to imitate the singing of other birds and even the voice of a person. They can imitate the bleating of sheep, the croaking of a frog, the clicking of a whip, the barking of a dog. Starlings have learned to portray the noise of a typewriter or the sound of a mobile call. When they arrive in the spring from the south, they sing with the voices of subtropical birds.
Starlings inhabit the flat terrain. They can be found from the lower to middle zones of the mountains. Starlings nest in closed places. This can be a hollow, a deepening of steep slopes, cracks in the rock or an earth embankment. If birds nest in settlements, then they arrange nests under the roofs of houses, under balconies and in various niches.
How many times a year chicks are hatched
Two clutches of eggs a year in starlings happen in the temperate and southern regions. In the northern latitudes, they lay their eggs once a year. In the clutch there can be 4-7 monochromatic bluish, whitish or greenish eggs. Hatching of chicks lasts from 2 to 3 weeks. The same time is necessary for their feeding. Very funny photos of how starlings look when they just hatched from an egg.
Relations of the starling with other representatives of the fauna and man
Now you know what a starling in life. It will be useful to learn about his relationship with humans, other birds and animals. So, for example, they with great pleasure can be near the ferret and eat food with it. In their colonies, these feathered strangers do not tolerate.
Starling benefits a person by saving green spaces from insects. Flocks of birds fertilize the soil well with their droppings. In the spring, starlings roam the fields with rooks. Since ancient times, people, knowing what a starling looks like and what its dimensions are, were made by birdhouses to make birds comfortable living. They take great care of their offspring and always bring chick feed to the nest.
Damage to agriculture
In Russia, starlings are often found in house yards. The owners, knowing how starlings look, admire them. The singing of this bird pleases the ear of man. By nature, starlings are very gullible and courageous. In mid-summer, young birds fly out of their nests and begin to roam in the meadows in noisy flocks. In the autumn, from the middle of September to the beginning of October, starling migration begins. Many of them fly away in early November, when the first snow falls. In winter, single starlings and their small flocks remain with a warm pre-winter. During this period, their mass congestion can become a serious threat to agriculture. They begin to peck berries and eat grain crops, thereby causing significant economic damage.