About the Common Hill Myna
The common hill myna, sometimes spelled "mynah" and formerly simply known as the hill myna or myna bird, is a species of starling found in the hills of South and Southeast Asia. The Sri Lanka hill myna, a former subspecies of G. religiosa, is now generally accepted as a separate species G. ptilogenys. The Nias hill myna are also widely accepted as specifically distinct, and many authors favor treating the southern hill myna from the Nilgiris and elsewhere in the Western Ghats of India as a separate species.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
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This is a stocky jet-black myna, with bright orange-yellow patches of naked skin and fleshy wattles on the side of its head and nape. At about 29 cm length, it is somewhat larger than the common myna (Acridotheres tristis). It is overall green-glossed black plumage, purple-tinged on the head and neck. Its large, white wing patches are obvious in flight, but mostly covered when the bird is sitting. The bill and strong legs are bright yellow, and there are yellow wattles on the nape and under the eye. Voice: The common hill myna is often detected by its loud, shrill, descending whistles followed by other calls. It is most vocal at dawn and dusk, when it is found in small groups in forest clearings high in the canopy. Both sexes can produce an extraordinarily wide range of loud calls – whistles, wails, screeches, and gurgles, sometimes melodious and often very human-like in quality.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where it lives
Recorded as a rare visitor in France, Puerto Rico, Sri Lanka, Vietnam.
When to see it
Peak activity in February · a variable species across most of its range
Easily confused with
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