FAST FACTS ABOUT STARLINGS :
Scientific name: Sturnus vulgaris
Average weight: 55 to 100 Grams
Average wingspan: 30 to 40 Centimetres
DID YOU KNOW?
9 INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT STARLINGS
- Starlings are at home in urban, suburban and agricultural settings. They can tolerate areas of high human density and activity. The birds are often found around dumps and landfills, picking through open dumpsters and trash bags.
- A migrating flock of starlings can number into the thousands
- Starlings will pair up in spring and summer to nest and raise their young. They produce from three to eight eggs per clutch.
- Starlings inhabit all regions in New Zealand however are more prevalent in the south island
- Large flocks of starlings sometimes join with blackbirds to cause serious damage to agricultural crops.
- In urban and suburban areas, starling nests built into building cavities can pose a fire hazard. New nests are added to old, compounding this combustible materials hazard. The birds can also get stuck in chimneys and metal flues.
- Starlings can enter a round hole that’s just 4cm in diameter, or a slot entrance that’s only 3cm tall
- Starlings are bold, aggressive scavengers and can quickly destroy crops of strawberries, blueberries, grapes, tomatoes, peaches, , apples and cherries. They can also eat up vast stores of grains and certain seeds.
- Starling droppings can contain the fungus histoplasma capsulatum, the cause of histoplasmosis in humans. The droppings are also highly acidic, eating into paint and degrading the strength and structural integrity of many materials.