Widespread and abundant in much of North America, the introduced European starling is arguably and problematically the most successful bird on the continent. Often characterized as bold, this bird is actually fairly wary and can be difficult to approach. Polytypic. Length 8.7".
Stocky and short tailed, often seen strutting about lawns and parking lots. Flight profile distinctive: buzzy in sustained flight, wings look triangular in more leisurely flight. In flight, wings appear translucent. Adult: one molt per year, but fresh fall adults look very different from summer birds. On freshly molted birds, black plumage has white spots all over; by winter, spots start to disappear; and by spring, the birds are glossy black all over, with strong suffusions of iridescent pinks,
