Bird Sighting

Species photo: Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0

Starling

Sturnus vulgaris · Sturnidae (Starlings)

Where Starling has been seen

Starling in our records

Records
6
First recorded
01/01/2021
Last recorded
01/01/2026
Places
Elton Hall Flash

Recent records

About the Starling

The common starling (Sturnus vulgaris), also known simply as the starling in Great Britain and Ireland, and as the European starling in North America, 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 the year. The legs are pink and the bill is black in winter and yellow in summer; young birds have browner plumage than the adults. Its gift for mimicry has been noted in literature including the Mabinogion and the works of Pliny the Elder and William Shakespeare.

Conservation status (IUCN)
Least Concern
Wingspan
38 cm

Text adapted from the Wikipedia article “Common starling” by its contributors (introduction, may be shortened), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, with the photographer and licence under each one.