Here are some Facts about the Starlings, I bet you don't know them all.

Starling murmurations are not random displays. They are a coordinated anti-predator defence where thousands of birds respond to their nearest neighbours in milliseconds. This rapid information transfer confuses predators like peregrine falcons, making it difficult to target a single bird while also advertising group strength.

European Starlings are among the most advanced vocal learners in the bird world. They can learn new sounds throughout their lives, rearrange them creatively, and incorporate them into complex songs. Their song often includes mimicked calls of other birds, frogs, sheep, machinery, and even mobile phone tones.

The seasonal change from speckled winter plumage to glossy breeding plumage is not caused by moulting. Instead, the pale tips of their feathers gradually wear away, revealing darker, iridescent feathers underneath—an energy-efficient adaptation.

Starlings have short wings with powerful muscles that allow fast acceleration, tight turns, and precise formation flying. Their flight coordination is governed by simple local rules—each bird tracks only 6–7 neighbours—yet results in complex flock behaviour.

Relative to their body size, starlings have a well-developed forebrain associated with problem-solving and learning. This cognitive flexibility is one reason they thrive in changing landscapes, from farmland to city centres.

Their feeding technique often involves probing soil with their strong, pointed bills, using a method called open-bill probing, where they force the bill open underground to detect prey such as leatherjackets and beetle larvae.

Within flocks, starlings maintain dominance hierarchies based on age, size, and experience. Dominant birds gain better access to food and safer roosting positions, particularly during harsh winter conditions.

Starlings are cavity nesters and will aggressively evict other birds—sometimes destroying eggs or nests—to claim sites. Males often build multiple nests to attract females, who then choose based on nest quality and male song.

Northern and eastern European populations are strongly migratory, travelling hundreds of kilometres to winter in the UK and western Europe. Southern populations are largely resident, showing how flexible the species is to climate and geography.

Although often seen as common, European Starling populations in the UK have declined by over 80% since the 1970s, mainly due to changes in farming practices reducing insect availability. Despite their abundance in some areas, they are now Red-listed in the UK.