The southern hill myna (''Gracula indica'') is a member of 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 Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

. It is a

resident Resident may refer to: People and functions * Resident minister, a representative of a government in a foreign country * Resident (medicine), a stage of postgraduate medical training * Resident (pharmacy), a stage of postgraduate pharmaceuti ...

of the forested regions of south

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

and Sri Lanka. This species moves around in flocks in the forest, and members of a flock keep in contact with a wide range of vocalizations.

Etymology

The French word for the bird ''mainate'' is probably derived from the

Indo-Portuguese Indo-Portuguese creoles are the several Portuguese creoles spoken in the erstwhile Portuguese Indian settlements, Cochin Portuguese Creole, Fort Bassein, Goa and Damaon, Portuguese Ceylon etc, in present-day India and Sri Lanka. These creole ...

mainato, from the name of a songbird living near water, and is probably a

metaphor A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide (or obscure) clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are often compared wi ...

since it refers to a man whose job is to wash the clothes of others.

Description

The southern hill myna has a shiny black plumage. It generally measures about twenty centimeters. It can live between 15 and 30 years. The legs are yellow, the beak is bright orange at the base and yellow at the tip. It has white spots on the primary

remiges Flight feathers (''Pennae volatus'') are the long, stiff, asymmetrically shaped, but symmetrically paired pennaceous feathers on the wings or tail of a bird; those on the wings are called remiges (), singular remex (), while those on the tai ...

. Like other species of hill myna, the southern hill myna has yellow wattles on the head.

Habitats and behavior

The southern hill myna is present in southwestern

and Sri Lanka. It inhabits

tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests The tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forest is a habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature and is located at tropical and subtropical latitudes. Though these forests occur in climates that are warm year-round, and may receive ...

, mountains,

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evolution in severa ...

forests and plantation areas. It is usually found high in the

canopy Canopy may refer to: Plants * Canopy (biology), aboveground portion of plant community or crop (including forests) * Canopy (grape), aboveground portion of grapes Religion and ceremonies * Baldachin or canopy of state, typically placed over an ...

, moving in large noisy groups of about half a dozen, in treetops at the edge of the forest. It hops sideways along the branch. Like most starlings, the hill myna is

omnivorous 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 nut ...

, eating fruit, nectar and insects. Its voice is melodious, it is able to emit various croaks and calls. The hill myna is considered to be one of the best talking birds, often imitating human sounds and voice, better than

parrots Parrots, also known as psittacines (), are birds of the roughly 398 species in 92 genera comprising the order Psittaciformes (), found mostly in tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three superfamilies: the Psittacoide ...

. It is also bred in captivity for this particularity. The southern hill myna is claimed to be less vocally gifted than the

common hill myna The common hill myna (''Gracula religiosa''), sometimes spelled "mynah" and formerly simply known as the hill myna or myna bird, is the myna most commonly seen in aviculture, where it is often simply referred to by the latter two names. It is a ...

, a very similar species whose range does not overlap.

Reproduction

It builds a nest in a hole in a tree. They are usually two or three eggs in the nest. Male and female birds look alike.

Conservation status

Although the population is declining it is considered "

Least Concern A least-concern species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as evaluated as not being a focus of species conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. T ...

" by the IUCN.

References

southern hill myna Birds of South India Birds of Sri Lanka southern hill myna southern hill myna {{Sturnidae-stub