Abbott's starling (''Arizelopsar femoralis'') is a species of

starling Starlings are small to medium-sized passerine (perching) birds known for the often dark, glossy iridescent sheen of their plumage; their complex vocalizations including mimicking; and their distinctive, often elaborate swarming behavior, know ...

in the family Sturnidae. It is found in

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

and

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

. Its natural

habitat In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species' habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ...

is subtropical or tropical moist

montane forest Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures lapse rate, fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is ...

s. It is threatened by

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

, and its population is estimated at 2500–9999. This species, at long, is the smallest species of starling. It is in the monotypic genus ''Arizelopsar''. The name of the species commemorates William Louis Abbott (1860-1936), an American naturalist and collector, who studied the wildlife of the Indo-Malayan region.

Diet

The Abbott's starling feeds on insects and fruit, including the fruit of '' Cornus volkensii''.

Description

The Abbott's starling has a black head and breast with white underparts and a yellow eye. Its voice is a musical whistled call moving up and down the scale.

References

Sturnidae Birds of East Africa Birds described in 1897 Taxa named by Charles Wallace Richmond Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Sturnidae-stub