Black-collared Starling (Sturnus nigricollis)
Order: PASSERIFORMES
Family: STURNIDAE Starlings, Mynas
Scientific name: Sturnus nigricollis
English name: Black-collared Starling
Characteristic: Size 28 cm. Recognized readily by having entirely white head, black bill and black collar; underpart white; upperpart blackish brown; tail black with white tip. An immature lacks a black collar and its head and underpart more brownish gray.
Distribution: Southern China, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.
Habitat: Preferring clearings with tall stands of trees, also crop fields, paddy fields, and other agricultural areas, scrub forest, around villages and towns. In Sakaerat area, it is found in clearings of grass fields among dry dipterocarp forest and forest plantations, also sometimes in dry dipterocarp forest.
Habit: Seen walking on the ground or lawns singly or in pairs which always calling each other. Diet includes plant seeds, ripe fruits, insects, worms and earthworms. In non-breeding season, they will congregate and roost through the night at a same spot in hundreds at dusk. this bird can be trained to imitate human voices as is done with the Talking Mynas, but quite less in popularity. It breeds during February to May and its globular nest is placed at the top or closed to the top of a tall tree. A clutch of 3-4 greenish blue eggs will be laid.
Status: Very common resident; protected by law as a protected wild animal.
