starling

/ˈstɑrlɪŋ/

/ˈstɑlɪŋ/

Other forms: starlings

A starling is a small, dark, glossy bird that's usually found in a group with other starlings. Many starlings are able to mimic sounds such as car alarms.

Aside from the hottest, driest deserts, you can find starlings just about everywhere on earth. When large groups of these sociable birds move in formation together, forming graceful, shifting cloud shapes in the sky, it's called a "murmuration." Starlings are also known for their ability to imitate the calls of other birds, as well as human-made sounds, including whistles, crying children, and car horns.

Definitions of starling

1. noun

   gregarious birds native to the Old World
   types:

   Sturnus vulgaris, common starling

   gregarious bird having plumage with dark metallic gloss; builds nests around dwellings and other structures; naturalized worldwide

   Pastor roseus, Pastor sturnus, rose-colored pastor, rose-colored starling

   glossy black bird with pink back and abdomen; chiefly Asian

   mina, minah, myna, myna bird, mynah, mynah bird

   tropical Asian starlings

   Acridotheres tristis, crested myna

   dark brown crested bird of southeastern Asia

   Gracula religiosa, Indian grackle, grackle, hill myna

   glossy black Asiatic starling often taught to mimic speech

   type of:

   oscine, oscine bird

   passerine bird having specialized vocal apparatus