Starlings distract drivers!

[goosey]

This is one of the sites I would love to see - a starling roost. I saw a mini version just last month in Beverwijk while I was waiting for a bus but it only involved a few hundred birds. Something like this must be quite breath taking though.

BBC NEWS | Scotland | South of Scotland | Starlings blacken motorway skies

When I see them on TV it reminds me of what we use to do with iron filings and a magnet when we were kids.

[Guy F]

I'd love to see this too, there's been a large roost quite near me this winter, I think I'll have to go and have a look over the next few days.
Guy

[ozwildlife]

Originally Posted by goosey

This is one of the sites I would love to see - a starling roost. I saw a mini version just last month in Beverwijk while I was waiting for a bus but it only involved a few hundred birds. Something like this must be quite breath taking though.

In their natural habitat, that "tornado" of birds does look impressive. Mind you, in our part of the world where they are an introduced species, that would not be a welcome sight at all. The link is a poster from Western Australia Department of Agriculture

[goosey]

Originally Posted by ozwildlife

In their natural habitat, that "tornado" of birds does look impressive. Mind you, in our part of the world where they are an introduced species, that would not be a welcome sight at all. The link is a poster from Western Australia Department of Agriculture

Strange, the difference in thought between the two countries.

You say they are an introduced species - don't say it was the Brits that introduced them wanting a reminder of home 200 years ago . When I want a reminder of home in Holland, I bring Bisto and mushy peas back from dear old blighty.

In the town I use to live, we had a starling problem on a cross roads on the main street in town. Starlings roosted in the trees there and every morning I had to dodge being splattered from above and slip and slide across the pavement on the fresh poo - it was horrid and stunk beyond belief. I don't remember seeing any magnificent displays though - I must have been too busy watching where I put my feet!

[paul m]

Originally Posted by goosey

Strange, the difference in thought between the two countries.

You say they are an introduced species - don't say it was the Brits that introduced them wanting a reminder of home 200 years ago . When I want a reminder of home in Holland, I bring Bisto and mushy peas back from dear old blighty.
......

Or the Dutch or all the other colonists. It was quite the done thing to introduce European plants and animals, as you say, to remind them of home. Also to give them something they were used to hunting (rabbits, for instance). Then there were the accidental imports, especially rats .... All of these things, harmless in their native range can be a serious problem when transported to a different ecosystem ....

[ozwildlife]

That is exactly right. The starlings were brought from England by the "Acclimatisation Society" in 1863 and released in eastern Australia, where they are now widespread. They brought in a lot of species like larks, thrushes, blackbirds, starlings to make them feel more at home. The Australian wildlife was not what they were used to hunting so they brought in deer, antelopes, pheasants and partridges etc. At the time, this all made sense to them - they saw themselves as improving the diversity of life and making it more like they were used to.

As for the starlings ... they are well established on the east and are now tolerated (containment as opposed to eradication). In Western Australia the arid area is a natural barrier that has limited their spread westwards, so it is more realistic to think about eradication there.

[frostfire]

There are definitly a lot of starlings about, even in the centre of Amsterdam I've seen loads this month, I think I've actually seen more starlings than pigeons there! Haven't seen a major flock though.

Originally Posted by ozwildlife

That is exactly right. The starlings were brought from England by the "Acclimatisation Society" in 1863 and released in eastern Australia, where they are now widespread. They brought in a lot of species like larks, thrushes, blackbirds, starlings to make them feel more at home. The Australian wildlife was not what they were used to hunting so they brought in deer, antelopes, pheasants and partridges etc. .

What happened the other species they introduced in Australia during the colonization? For some reason I can't imagine deer in Australia, the combination deer and kangaroos just doesn't seem right...

~*~Frostfire~*~

[ozwildlife]

Originally Posted by frostfire

What happened the other species they introduced in Australia during the colonization? For some reason I can't imagine deer in Australia, the combination deer and kangaroos just doesn't seem right...

~*~Frostfire~*~

There are deer here alright. About half a dozen species of introduced deer are found wild in Australia, but they are in fairly localised areas of suitable habitat. You need to know where to look to find them. Red Deer were introduced in about 1860 - a gift from Prince Albert apparently. They are still found in the Grampians National Park in Victoria and in parts south east Queensland. There are scattered populations of Fallow Deer in all the eastern states. Other introduced deer found here are Rusa, Chital, Sambar.

Quite a few of the European birds are now well established in south eastern Australia like Blackbirds, Goldfinches, Greenfinches. Other species like thrushes have not spread very far from their original release sites.

[paul m]

Two starling things.
We don't get them in my neck of the woods although a few hundred metres away there are roosts and nests (in the summer ) yet tonight a gang of European starlings (about thirty ... not the numbers we've been talking of in the thread) flew up to our house and spent at least twenty minutes doing the up, down, round and back flights .... have never seen this before - is it because spring is arriving?

This asks the questions of why they do this - it has nothing to do with feeding or mating (or does it?). Is it practice for change of behaviour when spring springs? So, finally, my question: there are lots of other sociable starling species (family Sturnidae) - over the world, do any or all (or none) of these species go in for this behaviour?

[ozwildlife]

Originally Posted by paul m

there are lots of other sociable starling species (family Sturnidae) - over the world, do any or all (or none) of these species go in for this behaviour?

The Metallic Starling (Aplonis metallica) from north Queensland and New guinea is the only starling native to Australia. It is very social and flies around in large flocks and nests in dense colonies. One of its common names is the Whirlwindbird.