The Daurian starling (''Agropsar sturninus''), or purple-backed starling, is a species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...

in the

starling Starlings are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Sturnidae. The Sturnidae are named for the genus '' Sturnus'', which in turn comes from the Latin word for starling, ''sturnus''. Many Asian species, particularly the larger ones, ...

family found in the eastern Palearctic from eastern Mongolia and southeastern Russia to North Korea and central China.

Taxonomy and systematics

The Daurian starling was previously placed in the genus ''

Sturnus ''Sturnus'' is a genus of starlings. As discussed below, the taxonomy of this group is complex, and other authorities differ considerably in which species they place in this genus, and in the species boundaries within ''Sturnus''. The genus name ...

''. It was moved to the resurrected genus '' Agropsar'' based on the results of two molecular phylogenetic studies that were published in 2008.

Description

The Daurian starling is distinguished from other starling species by its dark mantle and crown and narrow wing bars.Strange, M. (2002) A photographic guide to birds of southeast Asia: Periplus Editions

Distribution and habitat

The natural habitats of the Daurian starling are boreal forests and temperate forests.

References

*BirdLife International 2004
Sturnus sturninus2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Downloaded on 24 July 2007. Daurian starling Birds of China Birds of Korea Birds of Manchuria Daurian starling Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Sturnidae-stub