The red-winged starling (''Onychognathus morio'') is a
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 ...
of the starling family
Sturnidae native to eastern
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
from
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the Er ...
to the Cape in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...
. An omnivorous, generalist species, it prefers cliffs and mountainous areas for nesting, and has moved into cities and towns due to similarity to its original habitat.
Taxonomy
In 1760 the French zoologist
Mathurin Jacques Brisson
Mathurin Jacques Brisson (; 30 April 1723 – 23 June 1806) was a French zoologist and natural philosopher.
Brisson was born at Fontenay-le-Comte. The earlier part of his life was spent in the pursuit of natural history; his published works ...
included a description of the red-winged starling in his ''Ornithologie'' based on a specimen collected from the
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope ( af, Kaap die Goeie Hoop ) ;''Kaap'' in isolation: pt, Cabo da Boa Esperança is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa.
A common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is t ...
in South Africa. He used the French name ''Le merle du Cap de Bonne Espérance'' and the Latin ''Merula Capitis Bonae Spei''.
[ The two stars (**) at the start of the section indicates that Brisson based his description on the examination of a specimen.] Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the
binomial system and are not recognised by the
International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature
The International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN) is an organization dedicated to "achieving stability and sense in the scientific naming of animals". Founded in 1895, it currently comprises 26 commissioners from 20 countries.
Orga ...
.
When in 1766 the Swedish naturalist
Carl Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his Nobility#Ennoblement, ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalise ...
updated his ''
Systema Naturae
' (originally in Latin written ' with the ligature æ) is one of the major works of the Swedish botanist, zoologist and physician Carl Linnaeus (1707–1778) and introduced the Linnaean taxonomy. Although the system, now known as binomial n ...
'' for the
twelfth edition, he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson.
[ One of these was the red-winged starling. Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the ]binomial name
In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bo ...
''Turdus morio'' and cited Brisson's work. The specific name ''morio'' or ''morion'' is Latin for "dark brown stone" or "black quartz". This species is now placed in the genus ''Onychognathus
''Onychognathus'' is a genus of starlings, most of which are found in Africa.
All the species are quite similar, and characterised by rufous primary wing feathers, very obvious in flight. The males are typically mainly glossy black, and the femal ...
'' that was introduced by the German physician and ornithologist Gustav Hartlaub
Karel Johan Gustav Hartlaub (8 November 1814 – 29 November 1900) was a German physician and ornithologist.
Hartlaub was born in Bremen, and studied at Bonn and Berlin before graduating in medicine at Göttingen. In 1840, he began to study and co ...
in 1849.
Two subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
are recognised:
* ''O. m. rueppellii'' ( Verreaux, J, 1856) – south Sudan to central Ethiopia and north Kenya
* ''O. m. morio'' (Linnaeus, 1766) – Uganda and Kenya to Botswana and south South Africa
Description
The male of this long 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, ...
has mainly iridescent black plumage, with chestnut flight feathers, which are particularly noticeable in flight. The female has an ash-grey head and upper breast. The juvenile resembles the male, but is less glossy than the adults, and has brown rather than dark red eyes. The Ethiopian subspecies ''O. m. rupellii'' is longer-tailed than the nominate form and intergrades with it.
This species has a number of whistled calls, but the most familiar is the contact call, ''cher-leeeoo''.
This starling may be confused with other similar starling species, such as its sister species the pale-winged starling. The difference between the two is that the red-winged has rufous primaries while the pale-winged has whitish primaries edged with orange. The pale-winged has a bright red or orange eye, while the red-winged's is dark, almost black. Only the female of the red-winged has a grey head.
Distribution and habitat
The range runs down eastern Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
from Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the Er ...
to the Cape
A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck.
History
Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. T ...
, Kwa-Zulu Natal and Gauteng in South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...
. This species has a wide habitat tolerance. It may be found in forest
A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
, savannah
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...
, grassland
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natu ...
, wetlands
A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free ( anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...
, fynbos
Fynbos (; meaning fine plants) is a small belt of natural shrubland or heathland vegetation located in the Western Cape and Eastern Cape provinces of South Africa. This area is predominantly coastal and mountainous, with a Mediterranean ...
, farmland
Agricultural land is typically land ''devoted to'' agriculture, the systematic and controlled use of other forms of lifeparticularly the rearing of livestock and production of cropsto produce food for humans. It is generally synonymous with bot ...
s and commercial plantation
A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...
s, as well as urban centres. It is now common in many urban areas, due to the similarity between the structure of tall buildings and houses as nest sites with the cliffs of its original habitat. It may also nest in residential areas, breeding in roofs and apertures and up house eaves.
Behaviour
Food and feeding
Like other starlings, the red-winged starling is an omnivore
An omnivore () is an animal that has the ability to eat and survive on both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize the nu ...
, taking a wide range of seeds, berries, nectar from plants such as ''Aloe
''Aloe'' (; also written ''Aloë'') is a genus containing over 650 species of flowering succulent plants.WFO (2022): Aloe L. Published on the Internet;http://www.worldfloraonline.org/taxon/wfo-4000001341. Accessed on: 06 Nov 2022 The most wi ...
'' and '' Schotia brachypetala'', and invertebrate
Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chorda ...
s, such as the beetle species '' Pachnoda sinuata''. They may take nestlings and adults of certain bird species, such as the African palm swift. It will also scavenge on carrion and human food scrap.
The red-winged starling will obviously only perch on plant structures that will be able to support its weight; therefore when taking nectar it will choose certain species with strong, robust raceme
A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the ...
s with easily accessible flowers, such as that of ''Aloe ferox
''Aloe ferox'', commonly known as bitter aloe, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asphodelaceae. This woody aloe is indigenous to southern Africa.
It is one of several ''Aloe'' species used to make bitter aloes, a purgative medication ...
'' and '' Aloe marlothii'', and not '' Aloe arborescens''. Large flowers that can support the bird's weight, such as that of ''Strelitzia nicolai
''Strelitzia nicolai'', commonly known as the wild banana or giant white bird of paradise, is a species of banana-like plants with erect woody stems reaching a height of , and the clumps formed can spread as far as .
The -long leaves are grey-gr ...
'' and certain '' Protea'' species, are also chosen.
Fruit species that this species may feed on include figs, such as the sycamore fig
''Ficus sycomorus'', called the sycamore fig or the fig-mulberry (because the leaves resemble those of the mulberry), sycamore, or sycomore, is a fig species that has been cultivated since ancient times.
The term '' sycamore'' spelled with an ...
and others, marulas, date palm fruit, berries from species such as wild olive '' Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata'' and ''Euphorbia
''Euphorbia'' is a very large and diverse genus of flowering plants, commonly called spurge, in the family Euphorbiaceae. "Euphorbia" is sometimes used in ordinary English to collectively refer to all members of Euphorbiaceae (in deference to t ...
'', and commercial fruit such as apple
An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancestor ...
s, grapes, citruses and others.
In rural areas, red-winged starlings are often spotted perching on livestock and game, such as cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ...
, klipspringer
The klipspringer (; ''Oreotragus oreotragus'') is a small antelope found in eastern and southern Africa. The sole member of its genus and subfamily/tribe, the klipspringer was first described by German zoologist Eberhard August Wilhelm von Zimm ...
s and giraffes
The giraffe is a large African hoofed mammal belonging to the genus ''Giraffa''. It is the tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant on Earth. Traditionally, giraffes were thought to be one species, ''Giraffa camelopardalis ...
, a trait shared by the pale-winged starling, and may take insects and ectoparasites such as ticks, much in the manner of oxpecker
The oxpeckers are two species of bird which make up the genus ''Buphagus'', and family Buphagidae. The oxpeckers were formerly usually treated as a subfamily, Buphaginae, within the starling family, Sturnidae, but molecular phylogenetic studi ...
s.
Breeding
The red-winged starling is territorial, aggressive and intolerant when nesting, and will attack other species, including domestic animals and humans. When not breeding, red-winged starlings are highly gregarious and will associate with other members of their species in large flocks.
This starling is a cliff nester, breeding on rocky cliffs, outcrops and gorges. The red-winged starling builds a lined nest of grass and twigs, and with a mud base, on a natural or structural ledge. It lays two to four, usually three, blue eggs, spotted with red-brown. The female incubates the eggs for 13–14 days, with another 22–28 days to fledge. This starling is commonly double-brooded. It may be parasitised by the great spotted cuckoo
The great spotted cuckoo (''Clamator glandarius'') is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes, which also includes the roadrunners, the anis and the coucals.
It is widely spread throughout Africa and the Mediterranean Basin. It ...
.
Predators
It is preyed upon by other birds such as peregrine falcon
The peregrine falcon (''Falco peregrinus''), also known as the peregrine, and historically as the duck hawk in North America, is a cosmopolitan bird of prey ( raptor) in the family Falconidae. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-grey ba ...
s, lanner falcon
The lanner falcon (''Falco biarmicus'') is a medium-sized bird of prey that breeds in Africa, southeast Europe and just into Asia. It prefers open habitat and is mainly resident, but some birds disperse more widely after the breeding season. A ...
s, tawny eagles, cape eagle-owls,
pied crows, and gymnogene.
Status
The red-winged starling is not endangered and can be a pest in some areas, raiding orchards and attacking people that wander too close to their nests.
Gallery
File:Onychognathus morio 2.jpg, Chestnut-coloured primaries, which are particularly noticeable in flight, help to distinguish this species from the similar pale-winged starling.
Image:Red-winged Starling 2014 02 23 6113.jpg, Male with caterpillar food item
Image:Red-winged Starling male RWD.jpg, Male feeding in a Cape fig
Image:Red-winged Starling female RWD.jpg, Female, showing streaky grey head plumage
Image:Red Winged Starling on Table Mountain Cape Town 016.jpg, Exposed black-tipped, rufous primaries
File:Red-winged starling chick.JPG, A Red-winged starling chick that is almost old enough to leave the nest.
References
*
*Sinclair, Hockey and Tarboton, ''SASOL Birds of Southern Africa'',
External links
Species text
- ''The Atlas of Southern African Birds''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1588297
red-winged starling
Birds of Sub-Saharan Africa
red-winged starling
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus