starlings
Speckled European songbirds
Starlings are small to medium-sized songbirds with dark, often iridescent plumage.
The common starling, introduced to North America in the 1890s, has become one of the continent's most abundant birds—often seen in enormous flocks that create shifting, wavelike patterns called murmurations.
Starlings are adaptable and sometimes considered pests for their aggressive displacement of native species.
Mass of moving insects
- aerialElevated, or signal-catcher
- displayPresentation for viewing
- synchronyTemporal coordination
- undulationRhythmic rise and fall
patterns · ballet · twilight · dusk · spectacle · phenomenon · formation · choreography
Perching bird order member
- plumageBird's complete feather coat
- feathersBird's lightweight covering
- beakHorny avian mouthpart
- avianOf or concerning birds
songbird · perching · nesting · eggs · chicks · roosting · insectivorous · wingbeat
Harmful creature or nag
- non-nativeNot indigenous here
- introducedMade formally acquainted
- displacementRemoval from usual location
- competitionStruggle for supremacy
aggressive · ecosystem · biodiversity · overpopulation · colonization · spread · encroachment · proliferation
Tremulous, wavering light
- sheenSoft surface luster
- plumageBird's complete feather coat
- glossySmooth and shiny
- metallicResembling ore-based elements
purple · green · speckled · opalescent · reflective · luster · glisten · spectral
swarm
Mass of moving insects
undulation · patterns · ballet · twilight · dusk · spectacle · phenomenon · formation · choreography · fluidity
passerine
Perching bird order member
avian · songbird · perching · nesting · eggs · chicks · roosting · insectivorous · wingbeat · birdsong
pest
Harmful creature or nag
- non-nativeNot indigenous here
- introducedMade formally acquainted
- displacementRemoval from usual location
competition · aggressive · ecosystem · biodiversity · overpopulation · colonization · spread · encroachment · proliferation · nuisance
shimmer
Tremulous, wavering light
metallic · purple · green · speckled · opalescent · reflective · luster · glisten · spectral · prismatic
congregation
Assembled group of worshippers
multitude · cluster · mass · aggregation · roost · group · assembly · horde · bevy · colony
migration
Movement to new territory
- seasonalRecurring at fixed intervals
- flywaysAerial migration corridors
- navigationDetermining position and course
overwinter · autumn · spring · passage · journey · route · departure · arrival · resident · nomadic
- birdsrobin, crow, eagle, owl, duck
- farm pestsaphid, aphids, armyworm, boll weevil, corn borer
- flock birdsgeese, crows, pigeons, sparrows, blackbirds
- nest builderseagles, robins, sparrows, swallows, wrens
- pestsants, ant, bugs, cockroach, cockroaches
- bird strikesbird strike, pyrotechnics, wildlife management, gulls, Canada geese
starlingsbluebirds
Azure-plumed North American thrushes
woodpeckers · native birds · indigenous species · chickadees · American robins
starlingsowls
Nocturnal birds of prey
hawks · eagles · raptors · herons · kingfishers
starlingsCalifornia condor
Endangered Western vulture species
endangered species · whooping crane · rare birds · songbirds · bald eagle