Starling

I doubt if the starling is anybody's favourite bird, but these days perhaps this is a little unfair. They used to be a common and abundant species and a bit of a pest, but since the 1960s their population has declined. Loss of permanent pasture and mixed farming, and increased use of farm chemicals are probable causes.

Access to their main food of earthworms and leather jackets has also declined, particularly on arable land. There is also a shortage of nesting sites in many parts of the UK.

Long term monitoring by the British Trust for Ornithology shows that starling numbers have fallen by 66% in Britain since the mid-1970s. Because of this decline in numbers, the starling is red listed as a bird of high conservation concern.

Pictured is a young starling moulting into his adult feathers, still with the brown head of a youngster, but is growing new adult black feathers with white spots. Not an ugly bird, not a bird that takes other birds eggs or chicks, perhaps it is time for a rethink on their likeability status.