The singing starling (''Aplonis cantoroides'') is a medium-sized (20 cm in length)

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, ...

Description

Adult singing starlings have glossy black plumage and bright red irises. Immature birds are paler, with streaked underparts and brown irises. They are distinguished from

metallic starling The metallic starling (''Aplonis metallica''), also known as the shining starling, is a bird in the starling family native to the Moluccas, New Guinea, Queensland and the Solomon Islands. Description The adult has brilliant red eyes, a long for ...

s by shorter, square tails and thicker bills.

Distribution and habitat

Singing starlings are found in

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 ...

and some adjacent islands, the

Bismarck Archipelago The Bismarck Archipelago (, ) is a group of islands off the northeastern coast of New Guinea in the western Pacific Ocean and is part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea. Its area is about 50,000 square km. History The first inhabitants o ...

Admiralty Islands The Admiralty Islands are an archipelago group of 18 islands in the Bismarck Archipelago, to the north of New Guinea in the South Pacific Ocean. These are also sometimes called the Manus Islands, after the largest island. These rainforest-co ...

and

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 ...

. They have been recorded from

Boigu Boigu Island (also known as Malu Kiyay or Malu Kiwai) is the most northerly inhabited island of Queensland and of Australia. It is part of the Top Western group of the Torres Strait Islands, which lie in the Torres Strait separating Cape York Pe ...

and Saibai Islands,

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_ ...

, Australian territory in north-western

Torres Strait The Torres Strait (), also known as Zenadh Kes, is a strait between Australia and the Melanesian island of New Guinea. It is wide at its narrowest extent. To the south is Cape York Peninsula, the northernmost extremity of the Australian ma ...

. They inhabit forest edges, gardens and cultivated areas with trees, urban areas and coconut groves.

Behaviour

Feeding

They eat

fig The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Moraceae. Native to the Mediterranean and western Asia, it has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world ...

s and other soft fruits, and sometimes insects.

Breeding

They nest in tree-hollows, cliffs and buildings, often colonially, laying 2-3 pale blue eggs.

Call

The call is a repeated, high-pitched, down-slurred whistle.

Conservation

As a species with a large range and no evidence of population decline, it is assessed as being of

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. Th ...

References

* Beehler, Bruce M.; & Finch, Brian W. (1985). ''Species Checklist of the Birds of New Guinea''. RAOU Monograph No.1. Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union: Melbourne. * Beehler, Bruce M.; Pratt, Thane K.; & Zimmerman, Dale A. (1986). ''Birds of New Guinea''. Wau Ecology Handbook No.9. Princeton University Press. * BirdLife International. (2006). Species factsheet: ''Aplonis cantoroides''. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 4 Feb 2007 * Coates, Brian J. (1990). ''The Birds of Papua New Guinea. Vol.II: Passerines''. Dove Publications: Alderly, Queensland. * Higgins, P.J.; Peter, J.M.; & Cowling, S.J. (eds). 2006. ''Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds. Volume 7: Boatbill to Starlings''. Oxford University Press: Melbourne. singing starling Birds of Melanesia singing starling singing starling {{sturnidae-stub