STUDIES OF ROOSTING COMMON STARLINGS Sturnus vulgaris lN SOUTH AUSTRALIA
| Posted: |
16/04/2021 |
| Author(s): |
C. O. Fuller, M. D. Murray, M. Waterman |
This study commenced when Common Starlings Sturnus vulgaris started to roost regularly in a barn, where they could be trapped easily in large numbers in the winter months, and 95 per cent of them could be banded. This was done annually (1-5 times) in all but two years from 1969 to 1994 and also in 2000 and 2001.
Of 15583 birds banded, only 34.6 per cent were recaptured, and only about a half of them were recaptured more than once. Many were recaptured up to nine years from when banded, several up to 17 years, and one after 29 years, the sole occasion it was retrapped. The few dead recoveries showed a probable rapid and widespread spring dispersal westwards.
The population structures of the roosting birds were variable in numbers and individuals present, even when captured at weekly intervals for five weeks in one year It appeared that other birds, probably of winter influxes, were using opportunistically the roosting site of local birds, resulting in a complex turnover.
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