The Common Myna is a loud, bold starling from South Asia that has been introduced to South Florida and Hawaii. It is brown with a black head and a bare yellow patch behind each eye, and it flashes white wing patches in flight. It is one of only three birds on the list of the world's 100 worst .
Appearance
- Appearance
- About 9 in (23 cm) long. Males and females look alike. The white wing patches and tail tips show in flight.
- Voice
- Very noisy, with squawks, chirps, clicks, and whistles.
Look-alikes
European Starlings are black with a purple-green gloss, spotted with white in winter, and slightly smaller, with no bare yellow skin by the eye. The Common Myna is brown with a black head and a yellow eye patch.
Why they get mixed upBoth are dark, short-tailed starlings found around towns in Florida, and the starling's bill also turns yellow in spring and summer.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- Towns and cities
- Parking lots
- Farmland
- Parks and yards
- Range
- Native to South and Southeast Asia and southern China. In the US it is established in Hawaii, where it was brought from India in 1865 to control armyworms, and in South Florida, where escaped or released pets first bred in Miami in 1983. It has since been reported in many other Florida counties.
- Seasonal presence
- Year-round resident.
- Preferred conditions
- Prefers open ground near people. In Florida it is often seen around shopping-center parking lots.
Behavior
- Diet
- Eats almost anything: insects (especially grasshoppers), worms, spiders, seeds, fruit, and human food scraps. It can damage fruit and grain crops.
- Social life
- Usually seen in pairs. Gathers in large communal roosts at night, sometimes with thousands of birds.
Life cycle
- Breeding season
- Breeds through much of the year, depending on where it lives.
- Nest
- Builds in tree cavities, building crevices, or palm crowns, often from twigs and trash. It aggressively evicts other cavity-nesting birds.
- Clutch size
- Usually 4–5 blue eggs (up to 6)
- Incubation
- 13–18 days
- Fledging
- 22–24 days
Name and classification
- About the name
- There are two subspecies: the widespread Indian form (A. t. tristis) and the darker Sri Lankan form (A. t. melanosternus), which has a larger yellow face patch.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- LCLeast ConcernLow risk of extinction
- Threats
- In Hawaii it competes with native birds for food and nest sites. In Florida it competes with Purple Martins for nest sites.
More species to explore
Record what you meet and build your own collection
Your photos are kept with their date and place, and you can fill regional albums one species at a time.