Chestnut-tailed Starling

A member of the starling family is the chestnut-tailed starling or the grey-headed starling or grey-headed myna (Sturnia malabarica). In India and Southeast Asia, it is a resident or partly migratory species found in wooded habitats. The name of the species is after the distribution in the Malabar area of a former subspecies. Although a winter visitor to peninsular India is the chestnut-tailed starling, the closely related resident breeding population with a white head is now regarded as a complete species, the Malabar starling (Sturnia blythii).

In open woodland and cultivation, the chestnut-tailed starling's nest is usually found. In an old barbet or woodpecker hole in a tree-trunk, 3-12 m (9.8-39.4 ft) up, the chestnut-tailed starling is building a nest. 3-5 eggs, light blue, unmarked, is the usual clutch. Normally, the nesting season is from March to June.

The chestnut-tailed starling is, like most starlings, somewhat omnivorous, consuming fruit, nectar and insects. In close flocks, they fly and sometimes change directions quickly with great synchrony.