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Micronesian Starling
jmorlan

Micronesian Starling (Aplonis opaca guami)

This is a rather large, but short-tailed starling native to Micronesia, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Palau. This is an adult. Immatures are variably streaked below depending on subspecies. Otherwise, subspecies differ in bill size and overall iridescence. The population on Guam and Saipan (A. o. guami) is characterized by shorter bill and overall greenish gloss when seen in good light. It is the only native songbird surviving on Guam where they declined by over 90% after the introduction of the Brown Tree Snake (Boiga irregularis). However a few manage to persist on Guam by nesting in buildings and birdhouses which are relatively free of snakes. On Guam it is currently limited to Cocos Island in southern Guam and to the military housing area of Andersen Air Force Base in Northern Guam. The government on Guam considers this species to be endangered but on Saipan it remains fairly common.
Location
WW II Memorials, Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands
Date taken
8 September 2019
Scientific name
Aplonis opaca guami
Equipment used
Canon PowerShot SX60 HS
A well posed and clear study of this starling, Joseph.
 

Media information

Category
Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
Added by
jmorlan
Date added
View count
26
Comment count
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