the whole day, continually repeating the 

 new words that they have learnt, and 

 giving uterance to phrases even of con- 

 siderable length." The young birds are 

 very noisy and while feeding and train- 

 ing them the parents are scarcely less so. 

 So great, in fact, is this noisy babble that 

 it often becomes very unpleasant. 



The StarHng is a gregarious bird at all 

 times, but this habit is more marked af- 

 ter the breeding season has passed. It 

 has its favorite haunts and, though a 

 flock may be dispersed during the day- 

 time while feeding, all will congregate 

 in the favorite locality at nightfall. Mr. 

 William Yarrell, in his "British Birds," 

 gives an interesting anecdote regarding 

 the abundance and social habits of the 

 Starling. Speaking of an English es- 

 tate, he says, ''This locality is an ever- 

 green plantation covering several acres, 

 to which these birds repair in an even- 

 ing — I was going to say, and I believe 

 I might truly say — by millions, from the 

 low ground about the Severn, where 

 their noise is something altogether un- 

 usual. By packing in such myriads upon 

 the evergreens, they have stripped them 

 of their leaves, except just at the tops, 

 and have driven the pheasants, for whom 

 the plantation was intended, quite away 

 from the grounds." 



Regarding their nesting and mating 

 habits Mr. Henry Seebohm savs : "Early 

 in April, sometimes not until the begin- 

 ning of May, the Starlings have mostly 

 mated and gone to their breeding holes. 

 Previous to this, however, much quar- 

 reling goes on for the choice of suitable 

 sites. The strong gain the best holes, 

 while the weak seek quarters elsewhere. 

 The Starling will build its nest almost 



anywhere, and it needs but slight en- 

 couragement to take up its quarters in 

 any suitable hole or box placed for its 

 reception. It will even dislodge large 

 tiles and burrow considerable distances 

 under the eaves, and its bulky nest often 

 stops up some spout, to the dismay of 

 the householder. A hole in the gable 

 or inside the dovecot are also favorite 

 places, while its partiality for holes in 

 the trees is none the less. Tt also com- 

 monly breeds in ruins, churches, and old 

 masonry of every description. In the 

 wilder portions of the country the Starl- 

 ing selects a hole either in a tree or a 

 rock for its purpose, and it will often 

 breed in great numbers in caves or in 

 crevices of the ocean cliffs." The nest 

 is not a fine piece of bird architecture. 

 It is coarse and slovenly constructed 

 with dry grass, fibers, twigs, small roots, 

 rags, twine, paper and in fact of any sub- 

 stance that strikes the fancy of the bird. 

 It is lined, though not always, with wool, 

 vegetable down and feathers. At times 

 when the nest is placed in hollow trees 

 the bedding consists of powdered wood. 

 The Starling returns to the same site 

 year after year, but always builds a new 

 nest. 



Though the Starling will often pilfer 

 fruit trees, especially late in the season, 

 it is of great service to man, for its chief 

 food consists of worms, larvae and va- 

 rious adult insects. It is a voracious 

 feeder and thus destroys a large number 

 of forms of insect life, many of which 

 are very destructive to plant life. It "is 

 almost as closely associated with man 

 as the sparrow," but unlike the sparrow 

 it is much more able to adapt itself to a 

 change of surroundings. 



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