STABLING 155 



During the greater portion of the year his food consists almost 

 entirely of insects in their different stages. Like the rook, he 

 searches at the roots of the grass for worms and grubs ; and 

 there is no doubt that he deserves his reputation of one of the 

 farmer's feathered helpers. He attends the sheep and cattle in the 

 meadows, and is often seen perching on their backs ; the animals 

 take it quietly, and perhaps know that he is on the look-out for 

 ticks, which are a source of irritation to them. 



Although a digger and plodder, the starling is very different 

 from his companion, the rook, in manner. The rooks are seen 

 soberly marching about, quartering the ground, each one intent on 

 finding something for himself. The starlings are not nearly so 

 methodical ; they run about a great deal on the feeding-ground, 

 and watch and interfere with each other. When one by chance 

 finds a rich treasure, the others are eager to share it, and there are 

 occasional scolding matches, and sometimes downright quarrelling, 

 among them. 



The starling is also a fruit-eater, particularly of cherries ; and 

 in winter, when insect food is scarce, he will eat berries, seeds, and 

 gram, and, like the blackbird and blue tit, may be easily attracted 

 to the house with scraps of animal food. 



The nesting habits of the starling contribute to make it one of 

 our most familiar birds. He breeds in holes, and a hole in a tree 

 or rock, in a cliff or quarry, suits him very well ; but he more often 

 finds a suitable place under the eaves of a house, or in a barn, or 

 church-tower, or other building; and, unless disturbed, he will 

 continue to use the same site year after year. As early as January 

 the starlings begin to pay occasional visits to the breeding-site, but 

 they do not build until April. The nest is composed of a large 

 quantity of dry grass, small twigs, moss, and other materials, and 

 is sometimes lined with wool or feathers. Four to seven eggs are 

 laid five being the usual number of a delicate pale greenish 

 blue colour, and unspotted. 



The starling sings more or less all the year, but his song is at 

 its best in the spring months. He has no such melodious notes as 

 distinguish the warblers ; his merit lies less in the quality of the 

 sounds he utters than in their endless variety. In a leisurely way 

 he will sometimes ramble on for an hour, whistling and warbling 

 very agreeably, mingling his finer notes with chatterings and 

 duckings and squealings, and sounds as of snapping the fingers 

 and of kissing, with many others quite indescribable. On account 



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