Starling
April 16, 2006 on 12:05 am | In Communication | 3 CommentsI’ve just been listening to a European starling — Sturnus vulgaris — singing on the peak of an adjacent roof next to our balcony. I don’t think I’ve ever paid much attention to starling songs before. The songs have a astonishing degree of complexity and variety, and go on for a long time without repeating themselves. I listened for about half an hour to this single bird. Perhaps it was especially compelling because one usually doesn’t get the chance to hear one starling all on its own, clearly. (It was joined by another starling on the roof part way through, but that other starling kept its beak shut.)
Given that starling song seems much more complicated than the rest of what starlings do (and I might just be ignorant), I have to wonder what all that complexity is for. And I wonder how much of the complexity of our own behavior would appear just as purpose-free if viewed by some other species with the ability to reflect.
Starlings have an interesting history. They were introduced into North America in the 1890s by one Eugene Schieffelin, for the dubious reason of bringing all the birds mentioned in Shakespeare’s plays to the New World. The starling caught on here (and has wreaked havoc on native species), while a lot of the others didn’t get any ecological traction.
Maybe Eugene Schieffelin was acting kind of like a starling, in his own way: in importing Shakespearean birds, he gave vent to some kind of lyrical motive, although not one that would make sense to most other species — or maybe even most other individuals. Come to think of it, he was probably trying to impress a mate.
3 Comments »
RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI
Leave a comment
Entries and comments feeds.
Valid XHTML and CSS.
All content copyright (c) 2006-2007 Joseph Berkovitz. All Rights Reserved.
There is an old anthropology paper called Body Ritual among the Nacirema that tries to look at the question of the “complexity of our own behavior” and how an outsider might view it.
Comment by Daniel R. — April 19, 2006 #
Just over a year since you posted this, I posted this: Starling PR, The Flocking Algorithm and Avian Beatboxers, which may interest you – it’s not just their complex song that makes them interesting.
As a European, I must apologize for the introduction of the starling, which has had some bad consequences in America. But perhaps the bird’s charms outweigh its more unfortunate habits.
Comment by Alistair Robinson — April 18, 2007 #
European Starlings (Sturum Vulgaris) are almost magical in nature. I have several rescued from outdoor cats, to those injured from the side of the road. Included in the Starling family is the Minah bird sold in Pet shops. Like the Minah, the Starling is quit adept at mimicry. Our shining “Star” at last count has 38 phrases in her vocabulary, and seems to understand syntax. Example; She picked up the phrase “be nice to mommy” and now says “Be nice to Speckie”, having substituted her name for “Mommy”.
Comment by D. Couch — August 4, 2007 #