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Common starling
Sturnus vulgaris
46.9492, -124.132
Field Notes
Description:
I'm pretty sure the adult starling on the left is showing the juvenile starling on the right proper bathing etiquette. Then the two fly up to a telephone line to dry off. Basically a medium-sized, black song bird with speckled plumage. The adult in breeding plumage has a distinctive yellow bill and speckled black plumage with purple-green iridescence. The nonbreeding adult has a black beak and light spots. Juveniles are drab gray-brown overall. Males and females look alike.
Habitat:
Spotted at the edge of Discovery Ave. SE in Ocean Shores, Wa.
Notes:
Also known as European starlings these introduced birds into the United States where first spotted here in Washington state in the mid 1940's. Also on a special note, starlings have an advantage over many other birds because their unique jaw muscles designed both to clamp shut and spring open, allowing them to use their bills to pry things open, including openings in the soil.
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