Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 6, 1993 TAG: 9310070399
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Patricia Held
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Both of them liked starlings. If it were not for these two gentlemen, starlings may not have made it to our shores.
There were several unsuccessful attempts to introduce the starling from its native Europe. In 1892 Scheiffelin, who was a wealthy manufacturer who enjoyed studying birds, became determined to introduce into America every bird that was mentioned in Shakespeare's writings. He thought, what better way was there to introduce Americans to this great master's writings. A flock of starlings was let loose in New York City's Central Park.
Centuries of living in the populated cities of Europe prepared these birds for their new lives in America. It did not take long before nesting activity began and the young fledged.
The starling population spread like crabgrass, but then their novelty wore off. The bird that was so enthusiastically welcomed just a few years earlier was fast becoming a pest. In less than 60 years the starling's range extended as far as California. Today starlings are among the most abundant of bird species in this country.
Aggressive and prolific, starlings have defied the noise and pollution of industry and automobiles that have caused many of our native birds to flee. In fact, technological advancements seem to help starlings. Our intricate highway systems with their close-cropped grassy shoulders and median strips are exactly what starlings like. Here they have easy access to seeds, insects, worms and grubs. Likewise, our suburban lifestyle has provided starlings with expansive lawn areas ideal for feeding.
Starlings are also attracted to city architecture. They are particularly fond of intricate designs and the nooks and crannies that some of the older buildings provide. These areas provide warm sleeping quarters and ideal nest sights.
While starlings enjoy city life, they seem to cope with the country just as well. They are just as happy eating bugs and grain as they are dining in a city dump, and can sleep just as easily in a towering building as they can in a grove of pine trees.
During most of the year the bird has a speckled brown color, but during its breeding season, the bird is transformed. Its dull bill turns bright yellow and its feathers become iridescent, gleaming colors of purple, green, blue and gold. Starlings are often described as birds that blend in with their
environment. But to a bird lover, gardener and farmer, they are considered pests that destroy a field of grain and chase the prettier birds away. Starlings have insatiable appetites and have the unneighborly habit of ousting other birds from their nest sites.
It is their bullying nature that seems to anger most people. They regularly displace bluebirds, wrens and flickers. Unlike most of our local cavity nesters, which migrate south in the winter, the starling lives here year-round. The overwintering population of starlings pre-empt the limited nestings sites that would otherwise be used by the migratory cavity-nesters.
The bluebird seems to be the most affected by the starling's bullish nature. While other cavity nesters would just retreat to the woods where starlings do not nest, the bluebirds and starlings compete directly for the same nest sites. Because the bluebird is no match for the starling their numbers dropped.
Another annoying starling habit is their roosting. In the wintertime tens of thousands of birds will swarm together in a communal roost. They gather under bridges, in steeples and bell towers and in trees each night. The birds return to the same spot night after night and year after year.
When starlings were introduced controls were not considered. Today the starling population is a problem. Methods of starling control have included shotgun and cannon blasts, pesticides and even birth control. But they have all proved futile. No matter how much we persecute the starling, it still thrives. Able to adapt to our lifestyle far better than most, the starling's success seems assured. I wonder if Shakespeare and Scheiffelin would be pleased.
\ Patricia Held will respond to readers' questions on the plant and animal wildlife in the region. Mail inquiries to: Patricia Held, P.O. Box 65, Goode, Va. 24556.
\ Patricia Held is a Bedford County free-lance writer and author specializing in natural history.
by CNB