Euro Starling as Pet?
Bob Tarte
entrants brought a European Starling--which she told me was
one of the very few (now-)indigenous birds legal to be kept as
pets. I've read about how intelligent these birds are, and
I've always admired their vocalizations, so I was wondering if
anyone has had experience keeping them (if they are legal in
your state), how they are from a pet standpoint, and why (if
legal) one rarely sees them kept as pets or advertised for
sale.
Thanks,
Bob Tarte
BEAT Magazine
(via Lowell, MI)
Heidi Wulfraat
Regarding the law I suppose regulation would depend upon where you were
located, I'm not sure. In Canada the european starling is a legal pet bird
as they are not considered to be an indigenous species. One of my most
wonderful childhood pets was a starling named "Chicken Hawk". Chicken Hawk
was rescued from some ill meaning youngsters who had obviously found him
fallen from his nest. He was hand fed from approximately day three and
recovered from his ordeal with only a dislocated wing (which never did heal
properly, he was never able to fly). He spoke very clear engligh and learned a
grat number of words and phrases. He had tremendous energy and spunk but was
at the same time very loving and gentle. Today I have two budgies a 'teil a
lovebird and a variety of finches , as well I am a zookeeper (avian, neonate)
and still Chicken Hawk sticks out in my mind as an exeptional birdie
character. Why no one seems to want a pet starling? Not glamorous enough maybe?
>
>Heidi
>
>
Aaron Birenboim
: On 1 Aug 1995 01:47:09 GMT, BTa...@cris.com writes:
: >
: >I was at a bird show in Michigan recently, and one of the
: >entrants brought a European Starling--which she told me was
: >one of the very few (now-)indigenous birds legal to be kept as
: >pets.
As far as I know, most states let you keep non-indigenous birds as pets
Starlings and house-sparrows are non-indigenous species which are
plentiful in the wild.
: >I've read about how intelligent these birds are,
I did not know starlings were considered to be 'intelligent'.
I have dreamed about having a corvine (sp?)...
like a crow, raven, or jay. I hear that they are, as a group,
smarter than parrots.
: > how they are from a pet standpoint
I wonder too. Do they shoot poop? Can they be potty trained?
What do they eat? (mealworms? parrot-pellets?)
: (on a pet starling)...He spoke very clear engligh
WOW! I had no idea!
: He had tremendous energy and spunk but was
: at the same time very loving and gentle.
Was he 'cuddly'.... i.e. did he like to be touched?
: Why no one seems to want a pet starling? Not glamorous enough maybe?
Not glamerous to some. As far as I'm concerned, it looks like
EVERYBODY has parrots. It would seem MORE glamerous to have a
pet starling (although a crow or raven might be better.... but thats illegal).
If not glamerous, at least more EXOTIC, in a bohemian sort of way.
From what family/genus are starlings. I have often heard stories
about starlings as pets, but not much detail. Thats why I thought
they might not be all that interesting (interractive). If they
are good COMPANION animals, I mught look into it. I know
a wildlife re-habber who would certainly be thrilled to help me
in this quest.
aaron
--
Aaron Birenboim | Work (daytime)
mo...@netcom.com | bire...@ataway.aptec.com
http://www.aptec.com/aaron/ |
Albuquerque, NM |
carl cook
>Starlings and house-sparrows are non-indigenous species which are
>plentiful in the wild.
>
>: >I've read about how intelligent these birds are,
>
>I did not know starlings were considered to be 'intelligent'.
>I have dreamed about having a corvine (sp?)...
>like a crow, raven, or jay. I hear that they are, as a group,
>smarter than parrots.
>
favorite bird! Yes, the crows and ravens are very smart, in fact, they are
considered the most intellegent of all birds, the ravens maybe just a little
bit more so.
Crows live in family groups that practice cooperation as part of their normal
behavior. For example, while a group is feeding, there will be one or two
birds standing guard. When they are bathing as a group, they take turns
watching for danger. Crows also play - another sign of intelligence. Watch as
they swoop towards each other, lowering their legs and spreading their tail
feathers as they dive towards each other in what appears to be total
abandonment. Then there is the mobbing of birds of prey, owls, hawks and
eagles in defense of the flock.
Then there is the so-called crow funeral, of which I feel privledged to have
seen once.
We have rehabbed a few, and raised a couple of babies over the years. Yes, it
is illegal to keep them as pets, and while they will sometimes hang around
after release, its satisfying to see them completely wild and free again.
Excuse me for going on and on...but Corvis brachyrhynchos is about as
facinating as it gets(g).
Thanks.
carl
Heidi Wulfraat
>
>
>I did not know starlings were considered to be 'intelligent'.
>I have dreamed about having a corvine (sp?)...
>like a crow, raven, or jay. I hear that they are, as a group,
>smarter than parrots.
of all sorts every day, but then again he was more than "just a bird",
more like one of the family..
>: > how they are from a pet standpoint
stimulation just as a parrot would. Chicken Hawk was never caged
during the day.
>I wonder too. Do they shoot poop? Can they be potty trained?
...never tried the potty training idea but chicken hawk learned very
quickly that he was not permitted in certain rooms of the house. He
was very sensitive to intonations ofour voices and, much like a dog,
would respond to a scolding tone of voice.
>What do they eat? (mealworms? parrot-pellets?)
> Yep, all of the above. Just cover the four food groups and you'll do
all right. We fed a commercial softbill feed, mealworms, fruits,
vegetables, whole grain breads, cat food, meats ect.
>: (on a pet starling)...He spoke very clear engligh
>
> WOW! I had no idea!
> Actually that was clear english that he was speaking. Yeah really,
he said , hello chicken hawk what are you doing, good morning,
good bird, chicken hawk is a pretty bird ect.
He also did a mean budgie immitation.
>: He had tremendous energy and spunk but was
>: at the same time very loving and gentle.
>
>Was he 'cuddly'.... i.e. did he like to be touched?
> He used to curl up under my mothers chin when she was napping or
reading. He LOVED being cuddled but I have worked on rehab. starlings
that would not tolerate being handled (this because we do not
encourage extensive contact with birds which are to be released).
Chicken hawk, on the other hand, was raised with lots of love and
attention and he was sure to pay attention to everyone around him (no
favorites).
(:
Heidi
Dan Day
>Yes, the crows and ravens are very smart, in fact, they are
>considered the most intellegent of all birds,
Let the "parrots vs crow intelligence wars" begin.
>Then there is the so-called crow funeral, of which I feel privledged to have
>seen once.
Could you tell us about this? It sounds interesting.
--
"Why shouldn't truth be stranger than fiction?
Fiction, after all, has to make sense." -- Mark Twain (1835-1910)
carl cook
d...@se.houston.geoquest.slb.com writes...
>
>
>>Then there is the so-called crow funeral, of which I feel privledged to have
>>seen once.
>
>Could you tell us about this? It sounds interesting.
In article <408bm4$9...@sndsu1.sedalia.sinet.slb.com>,
d...@se.houston.geoquest.slb.com writes...
>
>>Then there is the so-called crow funeral, of which I feel privledged to have
>>seen once.
>
>Could you tell us about this? It sounds interesting.
Sure. In the early 1980's I was working a sunday shift at a local radio
station which is located in our city's port area, right on the water. It was a
warm day, and as the port is closed on Sunday, and I was alone in the station,
the area was quiet.
It was late afternoon, there was a syndicated program on, and I was reading
the paper, when I noticed that the usual cawing from the local crow population
began to grow in intensity; a lot of crows were making noise. Soon, the sound
was deafening. I walked to the front lobby and looked out the window. What a
sight! There were maybe 100-150 crows out there perched on every fence, on the
logs used as parking separators (no cars out there except mine), and on the
nearby rooftops. On the ground were a few birds, and nearby, up against one of
those logs, was a dead crow. I had read of the crow funeral, a behavior that
some writers describe as truth, and others dismiss as legend. My first thought
was, yes, this was indeed a "funeral", and if true, then I was witnessing
something not too many people have seen. If not, then it was a facinating
social behavior. In any event, it was important to remain still, to avoid
distracting the crows. I hoped a car wouldn't come down the road. None did.
The intense cacophony (I love that word and hope I spelled it correctly),
continued for about 30 seconds, when suddenly as if a conductor had waved his
baton, the music stopped. There was utter silence. Suddenly, the birds took
off, a few at first, then the rest, forming a black cloud that scattered to
the winds. I then went outside and watched the crows disappear.
This is a true story. After doing additional research into crows and crow
behavior, I am convinced that what I witnessed was the ledgendary crow
funeral. I know that's an anthropomorphic view, but I can't think of any other
word to describe what I think was a behavior unique to these highly
intellegent and social birds.
If anyone knows more, please enlighten me.
Thanks.
Carl
Heidi Wulfraat
>
>In article <401308$h...@news.halcyon.com> clc...@halcyon.com (carl cook) writes:
>>Yes, the crows and ravens are very smart, in fact, they are
>>considered the most intellegent of all birds,
>
>Let the "parrots vs crow intelligence wars" begin.
>
family corvidae
:just a point of interest the mynah bird is a close relative of the
starling, also in the family sturnidae
:not that I would ever dispute that crows and ravens are intellectual
sorts all in thier own!
:fun thread
Heidi
>
Robert Forbes
>This is a true story. After doing additional research into crows and crow
>behavior, I am convinced that what I witnessed was the ledgendary crow
>funeral. I know that's an anthropomorphic view, but I can't think of any other
>word to describe what I think was a behavior unique to these highly
>intellegent and social birds.
>If anyone knows more, please enlighten me.
>Thanks.
>Carl
This regards doves, rather than crows, but is at least slightly on
topic. :)
When I was little (like 6), we lived in Ohio and of course had a bird
feeder; which, in turn, had a full complement of doves at its base.
One day, one of the doves turned up sick or injured, unable to fly. I
cared for it as much as I could under the circumstances. It always
kept its distance, but seemed willing to tolerate me. Once night came,
I had to go back inside, worrying how the dove would fare through the
night. The next morning, it was not next to the feeder. I found it
dead in the corner of the yard. What was wierd was all of the other
doves, who normally would be at the feeder, were one the ground
surrounding the dead dove. They seemed unwilling to leave the side of
their comrade. At the age I was at the time, my interpretation of the
situation was of course anthropomorphic, but hearing of the crow
funeral reminded me of this haunting scene. In retrospect I can't help
but wonder what it really meant.
Robert Forbes
rfo...@ix.netcom.com
J Matthews
HW>.#FROM :kee...@nbnet.nb.ca N
HW>Date: Thu, 10 Aug 1995 22:24:54 AST
HW>>
HW>>Let the "parrots vs crow intelligence wars" begin.
HW>>
HW>:but a starling is in the family sturnidae, crows and ravens are in the
HW>family corvidae
Mozart had a pet starling and it could whistle all of his music.
---
. SLMR 2.1a . My pet bird comes from Mozam-beak.