Alien Eats Alien

Check out the trailer for the upcoming extra-terrestrial road trip comedy "Paul." Around the 2'10" mark, you can watch Paul the from-another-planet alien chomp down on a European starling, an alien in its own right.

Are You My Mommy?

Could you kill a creature (or smash its eggs) if it spoke back to you? Julie Zickefoose had a experience of this sort when she came across a starling (Sturnus vulgaris) that called her "Mom!" Check out the story in streaming audio over at NPR's All Things Considered.

Birdmuda

The Royal Gazette is reporting that this year's Christmas Bird Count on the island of Bermuda turned up more non-native birds than ever before. The Bermuda Audubon Society, which organized the count, notes that native species now make up less than half of the island's birds (based on total number of birds, not the number of species). The decline in native species is being attributed to habitat loss not just on Bermuda, but also in parts of America that are home to species that migrate south to Bermuda each year. You can actually go check out the raw data yourself on the Audubon Society's website...I count 931 house sparrows, 1359 starlings, and 1005 kiskadees.

Hey Wee-Woo!

Remember that artist who was trying to teach starlings to speak the name of one of the men who introduced them to the U.S.? Well, I may have a new BFF, and it's Wee-Woo the Original MySpace Talking Starling.

Wee-Woo friended me as soon as I asked, which is better than some humans-who-shall-remain-nameless have done. And since Wee-Woo doesn't judge me, I'm not going to judge his Sturnus vulgaris-ness, except to say that holy cow, this little bird's got a voice that makes my parrot shriek with jealousy! Check out some of those vids and you'll think they're fake, the voice is just all-too-human.

Anyway, Brian Collier's got some serious catching up to do...

P.S. - Hey WeeWoo, what you doing? <3 <3 <3 LOLOLOL

Flock Me Like A Hurricane

The Lippard Blog has posted an incredible video of a starling flock (Sturnus vlgaris) in flight. In the video, originally posted over at Rocketboom, a family watches and records as hundreds of the birds take flight, and then repeatedly descend on a poor little cedar tree that bends under their weight. It's actually quite a beautiful clip to watch, and I got a laugh out of the videographer's comment about the scientific name of the starling.

Tip of the virtual hat to Pharyngula for posting a link to the video (worth clicking through just to read the reader comments).

Starling For Attention (We Have a Winner!!!)

If you haven't figured it out already from the title, the Invasive Species Weblog is having a contest. Think up the best punny title for the post below and win a prize! The prize for this round is: A cool "Pests in your lake" decal from the Vermont DEC, plus an optional one-day Vermont park pass, if you're near Vermont and are so inclined. Post your entry (one per person) here or email it to me via invasiveblog AT knottybits.com

Contest ends at midnight EDT on July 11. The Invasive Species Weblog is not affiliated with the Vermont DEC, this contest is just a fun way of donating my "massive" profits from the ISW store to a good cause.

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The post:

According to this story from the Berkshire Eagle, an artist has created an exhibit called "Teach the Starlings" that consists of a birdhouse and a feeder that aims to teach starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) to speak the name of one of the men who first introduced the birds to the U.S. over a century ago. When a bird enters the birdhouse or visits the feeder, a motion-tripped sensor activates the recording, which repeats "Shieffelin" over and over. The artist, Brian Collier, notes that starlings can learn to mimic human sounds. He also notes "Most people think I'm a nut" :-). I think it's a pretty cool modern art exhibit - what about you?

Update: Congratulations to coco_beans for the winning contest entry "Starling for attention", which has now been installed properly at the top of this post, to be heralded by all for the life of the ISW! coco_beans chose to receive a "I've been Knotty this year" magnet as a prize. Thanks to everyone for entering, a new *Your Punny Title Here* Contest will be coming up in August.

The Single Guy

The Anchorage Daily News is reporting that after 25 years, starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) have firmly established themselves in the chilly climes of Anchorage, Alaska. There are now more than 150 of the birds living there - more than quadruple the number of birds known of just one year ago. A state wildlife biologist is concerned, but all he has so far is a single trap given to him by someone from the National Audubon Society. He's asking the public to contact the state Department of Fish and Game with information about the location of starling flocks, and is hoping to track them down to catch and euthanize them. The article points out that starlings are fair shooting game in Alaska. Somebody get this guy some more traps!

For more stories about invasive species in Alaska, check here and here.

Delinquency of a Mynah

This article from the Mail & Guardian discusses the ongoing invasion of South Africa by the Indian mynah bird (Acridotheres tristis). The problem has become so bad that BirdLife South Africa, the nation's ornithological society, is considering poisoning them in an effort to get populations under control. One concern with the plan is that native starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) will become accidental victims - odd to hear as a resident of the US, where starlings are the nasty ones being targeted.

Catch a Falling Starling

Note to the USDA: It would be nice if you could maybe send out a warning to the local townsfolk next time you decide to poison a big flock of starlings (Sturnus vulgaris). According to this story from the Peoria Journal Star, residents in the town of Washington, Illinois were horrified to discover hundreds of dead starlings on their property last week, in some cases more than 20 birds per homeowner. A representative from the USDA stated that the poisoning was done to reduce population numbers, but won't reveal where the flock was from or who requested the culling.

Bombs Away!

Keeping it local again today...The Boston Globe has an interesting story about one of the unintended consequences of the removal of the elevated green line tracks near the North ("Nawth") End in Boston. It seems humans are not the only ones appreciating the new view - starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) have decided the area's historic buildings make ideal roosting spots. Shopowners in the area are not happy about the daily coating of guano their windows and sidewalks are receiving. MBTA and Big Dig bigwigs have been given a tour of the mess, but no one's ready to claim responsibility for dealing with the issue.

Meow Mix

To whoever is feeding the feral cats (Felis domesticus) at the abandoned building on Mt. Vernon St. (by UMass Boston):

The flock of starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) really appreciates the cat food, all 150 of them. I have a feeling if there was ever a cat in that plastic carrier you put by the fence, it's been picked clean by now.

The other side of the pond

This is not exactly a story about invasive species, but England's Eastern Daily Press has this article about a study showing the link between the decrease in starling (Sturnus vulgaris) and house sparrow (Passer domesticus) populations and the popularity of gardening and home-improvement television shows. Apparently a lot of people have decided it's a good idea to cover their roof eaves with plastic and cover their garden beds with gravel, and this has translated into fewer nesting places and insects for birds to feed on. It's strange hearing about those particular species, considered pests in much of the U.S., as being red-listed (endangered) in their native habitat.

Thanks to the Conserv@tion website for posting the link to this story.

Smart Birds?

I happened across this site the other day when doing a web search. Until then, I had no idea that there were people who kept starlings as pets, but it turns out there are quite a few that do. Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), along with a few other non-native species, are the only wild birds that can be kept as pets in the U.S. (though you'll need to check your state's regulations as well, if you are thinking of doing this). This site and several others, including starlings.net and the For the Love of a Starling site, have been set up to help people who find abandoned starling chicks and want to help them. One interesting article on the Starling Talk website disputes the claim that starlings take over the nests of native cavity-nesting birds. Definitely gave me something to think about, as did the fact that the darn things can learn to talk. Luckily, no one has yet taught the flock of 200+ that hangs out on the power lines near Shopper's World in Natick, MA (do I smell an advertising opportunity here?).

Starlings in a fog?

There's a battle that's been brewing between the city of Indianapolis, Indiana and several flocks of starlings (Sturnus vulgaris). According to this article from the Indianapolis Star, the animal rights group Fund for Animals, outraged at a task force's decision to poison the birds, offered free training and use of a fogging machine. The machine sprays methyl anthranilate, which has been effective at permanently scaring this non-native species away. Methyl anthranilate is a food additive and is harmless to humans. In the long term, I don't see how the fogging can be an effective solution, since the birds will just end up roosting someplace else. Instead, I prefer Mike Redmond's idea "If you can't beat 'em, then eat 'em!" The Indianapolis Star has featured several articles about the starling dilemma over the past couple of weeks, including one with general questions and answers and one about the initial delay in the planned eradication.

Flipping the Birds

How can I resist posting a link to a story that has a quote like this: "Would you really like to eat your supper if a bird came up and took a dump in the middle of your T-bone steak?" That's how farmer Jerry Seimers feels about starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), which have invaded his land by the thousands. The flocks have resisted every attempt to scare them off, from loud music to fake owls, and now the USDA has stepped in to help Mr. Seimer get rid of the starlings by feeding them poisoned food pellets. No one's happy about having to poison so many birds, but the farm is already benefiting from the reduced starling populations, with native birds already starting to reappear.

Fire the Cannons!

What do you do when your bridge is covered with starling droppings (Sturnus vulgaris)? When all else fails, bring in the cannons. At least that's what they're resorting to on I-5 in Seattle, Washington, according to this article in The Seattle Times. The cannons fire loud propane blasts rather than releasing projectiles. Officials are hoping the booms will be enough to scare away the starlings, which roost in far greater numbers than the pigeons that flocked to the bridge in past years.

Black and Bluebird

If you were in Story County, Iowa last weekend, you may have been lucky enough to catch volunteers from Iowa State University and the Ames community acting out skits to show kids the problems that invasive species cause. According to this article in Iowa State Daily, one skit featured native bluebirds (Sialia spp.) being kicked out of their territory by European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) and sparrows. The skits were followed by a hike in 200-acre McFarland Park.

Bird Brains

A paper published in the March 2002 issue of the journal Global Ecology and Biogeography report results of a study done to investigate the dispersal patterns of two non-native bird species in North America. The authors found a correlation between habitat quality and dispersal patterns of the European starling (Sturnus vulgaris) and the House finch (Carpodacus mexicanus).

Further proving that starlings have at least one redeeming quality (i.e. they are fodder for scientific research), this recent press release from Johns Hopkins University (discovered via ScienceDaily) describes a study which found that the singing ability of male starlings is directly correlated with their health, potentially explaining how female starlings choose their mates (Karaoke anyone?).

Now if only someone would do a study to figure out how to get starlings to stop using my car for target practice...