Red Winged Starling (Onychognathus morio)


11 inches long.

Distribution is from South Africa up the east coast of Africa to Ethiopia and also in parts of West Africa. Formerly found in mountainous and hilly country in resident pairs or large flocks. It may now be found in forest, savannah, grassland, wetlands, fynbos, farmlands and commercial plantations, as well as urban centres. It is now common in many urban areas, due to the similarity between the structure of tall buildings and houses as nest sites with the cliffs of its original habitat. It may also nest in residential areas, breeding in roofs and apertures and up house eaves.

Like other starlings, the red-winged starling is an omnivore, taking a wide range of seeds, berries, nectar from plants such as Aloe and Schotia brachypetala, and invertebrates, such as the beetle species Pachnoda sinuata. They may take nestlings and adults of certain bird species, such as the African palm swift. It will also scavenge on carrion and human food scrap.

Fruit species that this species may feed on include figs, such as the sycamore fig and others, marulas, date palm fruit, berries from species such as wild olive Olea europaea ssp. africana and Euphorbia, and commercial fruit such as apples, grapes, citruses and others.

In rural areas, red-winged starlings are often spotted perching on livestock and game, such as cattle, klipspringers and giraffes, a trait shared by the pale-winged starling, and may take insects and ectoparasites such as ticks, much in the manner of oxpeckers.

Note the iridescent feathers – this can change the apparent color of the bird, depending on the angle and quality of the light.


Photographed in Table Mountain National Park, Cape Point, South Africa.