Starling

Listen to example recordings of the main vocalisations of Starling, provided by xeno-canto contributors.

This species can be found on the following statutory and conservation listings and schedules.

UK Birds of Conservation Concern	Red listed
Species of European Conservation Concern	Least Concern
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (global)	Least Concern
Schedule 1 license required (to disturb)	No
Birds Directive Annex 1	No
Listed on the Annexes of	WCA(III), WBD(II*), NERC (41)

The abundance of breeding Starlings in the UK has fallen rapidly, particularly since the early 1980s and especially in woodland (Robinson et al. 2002, 2005a), and continues to be strongly downward. The BBS map of change in relative density between 1994-96 and 2007-09 indicates that decrease over that period was widespread across England and eastern Scotland but that some increase occurred in Northern Ireland, western Scotland and Cumbria. More recent BBS data suggest that populations are also now decreasing in Scotland and Wales and are broadly stable in Northern Ireland. The species' UK conservation listing has been upgraded from amber to red as the decline has become more severe. Widespread declines in northern Europe during the 1990s outweighed increases in the south, and the European status of this species is no longer considered 'secure' (BirdLife International 2004). There has been a decline across Europe since 1980 (PECBMS: PECBMS 2020a>).

UK breeding population

-54% decrease (1995–2022)

Starlings breed and winter throughout Britain and Ireland, although some parts of central Wales are unoccupied in the breeding season. Winter abundance is highest in low-lying pastoral farmland in the northeast and midlands of Ireland and in the west and southwest of Britain. In the breeding season, abundance is greatest across Ireland and in low-lying areas in eastern Britain and the Northern Isles, with other concentrations associated with urban area.

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Occupied 10-km squares in UK

No. occupied in breeding season	2749
% occupied in breeding season	91
No. occupied in winter	2752
% occupied in winter	91

European Distribution Map

European Breeding Bird Atlas 2

Breeding Season Habitats

Most frequent in	Towns
Also common in	Villages

Relative frequency by habitat

Relative occurrence in different habitat types during the breeding season.

The Starling's breeding range has changed little, but relative abundance within the core range has decreased, consistent with a 50% populaiton decline in the UK during 1995–2010.

Starling is recorded throughout the year on up to 40% of complete lists.

View a summary of recoveries in the Online Ringing Report.

Foreign locations of birds ringed or recovered in Britain & Ireland

View number ringed each year in the Online Ringing Report

Maximum Age from Ringing	17 years 7 months 25 days (set in 2001)
Typical Lifespan	5 years with breeding typically at 2 year
Adult Survival	0.687±0.004
Juvenile Survival	0.518 (in first year)

Wing Length	Adults	131.3±3.5 | Range 126–137mm, N=32774
	Juveniles	130.2±4.2 | Range 122-136mm, N=10312
	Males	132.6±3.1 | Range 128–137mm, N=18182
	Females	129.5±3.3 | Range 124–135mm, N=13930

Body Weight	Adults	85.0±9.9 | Range 73.3–98.0g, N=24304
	Juveniles	81.8±7.6 | Range 70.0–95.0g, N=8104
	Males	87.0±10 | Range 76.0–100g, N=13448
	Females	82.5±9.3 | Range 72.0–95.0g, N=10351

Feather measurements and photos on featherbase

Ring size	C
Field Codes	2-letter: SG | 5-letter code: STARL | Euring: 15820

For information in another language (where available) click on a linked name

Causes of change

There is good evidence that changes in first-year overwinter survival rates best account for observed population change. Although the ecological drivers of Starling decline are poorly understood, changes in the management of pastoral farmland are thought to be largely responsible.

Further information on causes of change

As the population has dropped, the numbers of fledglings per breeding attempt has increased markedly (see above); clutches are now larger, and rates of nest loss at the egg and chick stage have fallen. These improvements in breeding performance suggest that decreasing survival rates are likely to be responsible for the decline. Evidence for this is provided by Freeman et al. (2007b), who conducted a population modelling exercise and found that changes in first-year overwinter survival rates could best account for observed population change, and were sufficient, on their own, to explain the broad pattern of decline. This pattern is supported by a more recent, integrated, population analysis (Robinson et al. 2014). The decline in survival rates nationwide coincided with the major period of population decline. MacLeod et al. (2008) also provide evidence linking Starling declines to the environmental conditions outside the breeding season, suggesting that the species' population status is dependent on interactive or synergistic effects of food availability and predation. Recent research in The Netherlands has identified changes in juvenile survival as the most likely explanation for similar substantial declines which have affected the Dutch Starling population since the 1990s (Versluijs et al. 2016).

There is little direct evidence from studies analysing the ecological drivers of the declines. However, changes in pastoral farming practices are likely to account for at least some of the decline in the wider countryside, probably related to changes in food resources, though these are largely unquantified (Robinson et al. 2005a). In Denmark, adults selectively forage in grazed areas when feeding nestlings (Heldbjerg et al. 2017), and the decline of the Starling has been linked to changes in grassland area and grazing density (Heldbjerg et al. 2016). A review by Heldbjerg et al. (2019) concluded that cattle abundance was most likely to explain the differences in trends across Europe, rather than grassland extent or temperature. Loss of permanent pasture, which is the species' preferred feeding habitat, and general intensification of livestock rearing are likely to be having adverse effects on rural populations in the UK, but other causes should be sought in urban areas (Robinson et al. 2002, 2005a). Whilst the number of cattle has declined, sheep numbers have increased, producing a different sward structure (Chamberlain et al. 2000b, Fuller & Gough 1999) and patterns of stock rearing have changed. These may have reduced foraging opportunities for Starling (Robinson et al. 2002, 2005a). Also the use of insecticides on grassland, though low, is targeted partly at tipulids, which may have reduced foraging opportunities further (Vickery et al. 2001). Although there is little published evidence that the density of tipulids has changed over time (Wilson et al. 1999), the area of permanent pasture, in which they are mainly found, has declined and the use of insecticides on them has increased. Drainage of grasslands is also thought to have reduced the quality of foraging conditions (Newton 2004). Even after considerable decline among farmland Starlings, tipulids remain important to them for provisioning young (Rhymer et al. 2012).

Suburban habitats important for Starlings with 60% of population in urban/garden habitats but relatively little known about them (Robinson et al. 2005a, 2006), and the causes of declines unclear though nesting attempts produce fewer young than rural birds (Siriwardena & Crick 2002 ). Town populations are doing best in the north and west but declining in the south (Robinson et al. 2005a). Further research into urban Starling population dynamics is to be encouraged if we are to understand the causes of decline of this charismatic species more fully.

Information about conservation actions

In rural areas, changes to pastoral farmland are most likely to be responsible for declines, with the intensification of livestock rearing and loss of permanent pasture reducing foraging opportunities (see Causes of Change section, above). Adults selectively forage in grazed areas when feeding nestlings (Heldebjerg et al. 2017), therefore maintaining grazing at this time is likely to be important. However, as the declines are believed to be driven by reduced first year survival, continued provision of suitable foraging habitat after fledging may be more important. Starlings capture more prey on short swards and providing short swards by grazing or mowing could therefore be a good way to improve foraging habitat (Devereux et al. 2004).

A reduction in the use of insecticides on grasslands may also benefit Starlings by improving foraging opportunities. Although the use of insecticides is low, it is targeted partly at tipulids which are an important prey item for Starlings (see Causes of Change section, above).

Starlings are also declining in urban areas which support around 60% of the population (Robinson et al. 2005a). Urban Starlings produce fewer young than rural birds (Siriwardena & Crick 2002) and urban birds are declining more strongly in the south of Britain than in the north and west (Robinson et al. 2005a). However, the reasons for the decline in urban areas are unclear and further research is needed before evidence-based conservation actions can be proposed.