The metallic starling (''Aplonis metallica''), also known as the shining starling, 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 ...

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 native to the

Moluccas The Maluku Islands (; Indonesian: ''Kepulauan Maluku'') or the Moluccas () are an archipelago in the east of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located ...

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

and the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its ca ...

Description

The adult has brilliant red eyes, a long forked tail and green-glossed black plumage. Immatures are pale below with dark streaks.

Behaviour

They are very social and flocks of them build messy suspended globular nests in tall rain forest trees where they breed, possibly only during the wet season (north-west monsoon, October–March) (observed at Kokopo, East New Britain Province, 2016). They are not fearful of humans and their activity on the ground below, being well separated from them by altitude, but a loud noise will see them fly out in a tight formation, circle, then return to their nests. Their movement is very fast. During the early part of the 20th century, a flock (or flocks) were seen to migrate during AugustBanfield, E.J.
Alike in Difference.
''Emu.'' Vol. 17, No. 4, 212-214. 1917. Accessed 2009-05-25. to Dunk Island in far north

, where they mate, preparing messy globular nests for their young which hang from tall trees.Plants and Animals in the Wet tropics.

Wet Tropics Management Authority
Accessed 2009-05-25. There they remain until April, whereupon they make their return journey to New Guinea. They are also seen in other areas of Queensland including Kuranda in the Atherton Tablelands, and Mossman Gorge.

Gallery

File:Aplonis metallica -Phoenix Zoo, Arizona, USA -two-8a.jpg File:Shining starling cairns09.JPG, Juveniles, Cairns Esplanade, N Qld File:Metallic Starling RWD2.jpg, Female with nest - Cairns File:AplonisMetallicaMetallica.jpg File:Aplonis_metallica_feeding.jpg, Feeding on ''Ptychosperma elegans'' fruit in Cairns File:Metallic starlings nesting.jpg, Metallic Starlings around high nests in the Daintree Rainforest in QLD. File:Aplonis metallica -San Diego Zoo, California, USA -head-8a.jpg, Male at

San Diego Zoo The San Diego Zoo is a zoo in Balboa Park, San Diego, California, housing 4000 animals of more than 650 species and subspecies on of Balboa Park leased from the City of San Diego. Its parent organization, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, is ...

, California, USA

References

External links

BirdLife Species Factsheet
metallic starling metallic starling Birds of the Maluku Islands Birds of New Guinea Birds of the Solomon Islands Birds of Queensland metallic starling {{Solomons-stub