Shepherd Maina

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Shepherd Maina
Shepherd Maina in her natural home Kolkata (Bengal region in India).

Shepherd Maina in her natural home Kolkata ( Bengal region in India ).

Systematics
Order : Passerines (Passeriformes)
Subordination : Songbirds (passeri)
Family : Starlings (Sturnidae)
Subfamily : Sturninae
Genre : Mainas ( Acridotheres )
Type : Shepherd Maina
Scientific name
Acridotheres tristis
( Linnaeus , 1766)

The Shepherd Maina or the Shepherd Star ( Acridotheres tristis ) is an originally Asian songbird species from the starling family . As an omnivore that originally lived in open forests, the Shepherd Maina proved to be a cultural follower that is exceptionally well adapted to urban ecosystems .

The numbers of the Shepherd Mainas have increased due to human influences and the IUCN added the species to a list of invasive neobiota in 2000 .

features

This 25 centimeter long bird is mainly brown in color, head and chest are dark gray and the wing bands, rump and rump are colored creamy white; the beak, the bare skin around the eyes and the strong legs are yellow. Both sexes look alike.

Occurrence

The Shepherd Maina originally comes from southern Asia from Afghanistan via India to Sri Lanka . It was naturalized by humans in South Africa , Australia , New Zealand and North America , especially in Florida and Hawaii . It lives in savannahs , bushes and fields, but also within urban areas.

Shepherd Maina as an invasive species

Shepherds Maina in Sydney , Australia

Because of their ability to reduce insect populations, shepherd mainas have been introduced to new regions by humans in many cases. In and around human settlements, however, they also compete with the native birds for nesting holes and food. The Hirtenmaina is classified by the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation as a threat to the ancestral ecosystems .

behavior

The Shepherd Maina is a sociable bird outside of the breeding season, searching for fruits, seeds, insects, worms and leftover food in open spaces, in gardens or on streets. At dusk, large swarms gather in trees to sleep and shout with gurgling, squeaking and clicking sounds. The bird can also imitate human voices.

Reproduction

The eggs are colored bright turquoise blue, clutch on Maui , Hawaii
Young bird in the nest

The Shepherd Maina builds a simple shell nest from grass, roots and twigs in tree hollows or building niches. Two to five eggs are incubated by both parents for about two weeks. The young birds fledge after four to five weeks, but are still fed by their parents for a while.

literature

  • Richard Grimmett, Carol Inskipp, Tim Inskipp: Birds of India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. Christopher Helm, London 1998, ISBN 0-691-04910-6 .
  • Colin Harrison, Alan Greensmith: Birds. Dorling Kindersley, Starnberg 2005, ISBN 3-8310-0785-3 .
  • Birds. Parragon, Bath 2006, ISBN 1-4054-5506-3 .

Individual evidence

  1. Jump up ↑ S. Lowe, M. Browne, S. Boudjelas, M. de Poorter: 100 of the World's Worst Invasive Alien Species. A selection from the Global Invasive Species Database. The Invasive Species Specialist Group (ISSG), a specialist group of the Species Survival Commission (SSC) of the World Conservation Union (IUCN), Auckland, 2000.
  2. ↑ Invasive Birds. Introduced Birds weblog, accessed February 11, 2011 .

Web links

Commons : Hirtenmaina ( Acridotheres tristis )  - Collection of images, videos and audio files