THE male redwing starling is entirely glossy blue/black, while the female has an upper mantle of dark grey.
Its voice is variable, with mellow sweet whistles that sound like ‘peeeo, wheo, teetoo’.
This striking bird is common in mountains, cliffs, gorges, rocky hill and buildings.
It is found in pairs when breeding, otherwise in flocks.
The redwing starling forages arboreally or on the ground, moving with bounding hops.
Its flight is fast and direct, and the bird is able to cling on cliff faces and vertical walls. It is highly aggressive near its nest, often dive-bombing carnivors and man.
The starling’s food is made up of fruit, insects, ticks, millipedes, lizards and aloe nectar. Its nest is a bowl of mud and plant fibres in overhang of cliffs and buildings.
The redwing starling’s Zulu name is iNsomi.
