Cover photo: BirdPix 19074 – Gregg Darling – Red-winged Starling
Identification
The Red-winged Starling is a large, black bird with striking reddish wing feathers. Males and females look similar but can be told apart: the male has an all-black head, whilst the female’s head is grey.
Both males and females have glossy blueish-black bodies and long tails. Their beaks, legs and feet are also black. When perched, a narrow strip of reddish-orange is just visible on the wing; however this patch of colour becomes much more obvious when the bird is in flight.
This colourful part of the wing contains the primary feathers; the long, strong outer feathers on a bird’s wing. Most species have 9 or 10 primaries. Primaries, together with secondaries, which are the rest of the long feathers between the primaries and the bird’s body, make up the flight feathers. This group of feathers plays an important role in supporting a bird in flight. Beyond keeping them in the air, the Red-winged Starling’s spectacular rust-coloured primaries are a distinctive characteristic, allowing for easy identification when seen swooping overhead.
Red-winged Starlings produce a sweet, clear two-note call and a highly variable whistled song. They also produce an alarmingly raspy scolding sound.
Birds in flight or foraging in a flock often communicate with shortened contact calls, which you can hear in the video below.
Habitat
Red-winged Starlings primarily feed on fruit, insects, arthropods, and nectar, often from aloes or proteas. It’s easy to tell when a starling has been feeding on nectar–its face usually ends up dusted with bright orange pollen (see lower R photo).
Clockwise from top L: Anthony Paton, Northcliff, Gauteng. 1 September 2018. BirdPix 148686; Marius Meiring, Plettenbergbai, Western Cape. 2 February 2021. BirdPix 190019; Zenobia van Dyk, Clanwilliam, Western Cape. 5 June 2020. BirdPix 114600; Dieter Oschadleus, Montagu, Western Cape. 21 October 2020. BirdPix 135428;
Gregg & Desire Darling, Port Shepstone, KwaZulu-Natal. 28 June 2014. BirdPix 8800
Red-winged Starlings forage alone, in pairs, or in small groups, either on the ground or in trees. These birds are opportunists; they are excellent at surviving on whatever types of food are available as well as finding new sources of food. Red-winged Starlings typically prefer rocky, mountainous habitat, but their opportunistic tendencies allow them to easily adapt to life along coastlines and in urban environments.
Distribution
The Red-winged Starling is found across east Africa, all the way from Ethiopia down to South Africa. Within southern Africa, it is common in Zimbabwe and southeast Botswana, and all of eastern and southern South Africa except for the driest interior parts of the Northern Cape.
Behaviour
Red-winged Starlings are gregarious and are usually either in pairs or large flocks. These birds are monogamous, meaning that the same male and female stay and breed together for many years. Though well-established pairs will often remain at their favourite nesting site all year, many Red-winged starlings join together in winter to form massive flocks, roosting together on rocky outcrops or in trees. Keep an eye out for these flocks in winter—hundreds of those distinct reddish wings beating at once make for a spectacular sight!
Much like with their diet, Red-winged Starlings are also opportunists when it comes to nesting. Pairs of Red-winged Starlings roosting as part of a flock may also nest close together; however, some pairs take up residency in a particular spot and nest alone each year.
L: Joan Young, Rustenburg, North West. 2 April 2014. BirdPix 9239;
R: Neels Putter, Cathedral Peak, KwaZulu-Natal. 11 November 2020. BirdPix 140314
Both males and females work together to build a large, cup-shaped nest from sticks, grasses, and mud. The nest is often lined with soft grass and animal hairs. The same nest is often reused for many years, and not always by the same pair of birds! Males and females will carefully refurbish and maintain an “old” nest before using it in the breeding season. Nests may be built in a variety of locations, but are most common on rocky ledges or ledges of buildings.
Further resources
Species text in the first bird atlas (1997)
Virtual Museum (BirdPix > Search VM > By Scientific or Common Name)
More common names: Rooivlerkspreeu (Afrikaans); Rufipenne morio (French); Rotschwingenstar (German); Storno alirosse (Italian) Estornino alirrojo (Spanish)
Recommended citation format: Daniel KA 2021. Red-winged Starling Onychognathus morio. Biodiversity and Development Institute. Available online at https://thebdi.org/2021/18/11/red-winged-starling-onychognathus-morio/
