From Opus

Alternative name: Sharp-tailed Glossy Starling

Lamprotornis acuticaudus

[edit] Identification

20cm. A medium-sized starling with a rather short, graduated tail.

• Glossy green crown, nape, upperparts and wings
• Wings with dark blue terminal spots on wing-coverts and tertials
• Glossy green tail with faint barring
• Glossy green chin, throat, breast and undertail-coverts, some blue gloss on belly and flanks
• Red eye
• ecki with more greenish-blue gloss above

Sexes similar. Females have probably an orange eye.
Juveniles are matt grey with paler feather tips and a yellow eye.

[edit] Distribution

From Angola east to southern Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, southwest Tanzania and northeast Namibia and northwest Botswana.
Common in parts of its range, rare in Botswana.

[edit] Taxonomy

Two subspecies recognized:

• L. a. ecki in southern Angola, Namibia and Botswana
• L. a. acuticaudus in the rest of the range

May form a superspecies with Lesser Blue-eared Starling.

[edit] Habitat

Found in open woodland, especially dry miombo and mopane country. Occurs at 900 - 1700m.

[edit] Behaviour

Feeds on fruit and probably also on insects.
Usually seen in pairs or small flocks, non-breeding flocks up to 40 birds, sometimes together with Lesser Blue-eared Starling and Greater Blue-eared Starling.
Breeds from August to October in Angola, in October in Zambia and from November to March in Namibia. The nest is placed in a tree hole. One nest contained three youngs.
Presumably a resident species.

[edit] References

1. Clements, JF. 2011. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to August 2011. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/downloadable-clements-checklist
2. Del Hoyo, J, A Elliott, and D Christie, eds. 2009. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 14: Bush-shrikes to Old World Sparrows. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8496553507

• List of references

[edit] External Links