Red-winged Starling vs Tristram's Starling

Red-winged Starling

Onychognathus morio

Medium133 gRocky

The male of this 27–30-centimetre (11–12 in) long starling has mainly iridescent black plumage, with chestnut flight feathers, which are particularly noticeable in flight. The female has an ash-grey head and upper breast. The juvenile resembles the male, but is less glossy than the adults, and has brown rather than dark red eyes. The Ethiopian subspecies O. m. rupellii is longer-tailed than the nominate form and intergrades with it. This species has a number of whistled calls, but the most familiar is the contact call, cher-leeeoo.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recorded by Anne Ndung'u · Call · Nairobi, Nairobi County, Kenya · CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: (c) Jonghyun Park, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Jonghyun Park · cc-by

Tristram's Starling

Onychognathus tristramii

Medium123 gRocky

Tristram's starling is 25 cm long (including a 9 cm tail), with a wingspan of 44–45 cm, and a weight of 100–140 g. The males have glossy iridescent black plumage with orange patches on the outer wing, which are particularly noticeable in flight. The bill and legs are black. Females and young birds are similar but duller and with a greyish head, lacking the plumage gloss.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Jan Ebr & Ivana Ebrová · CC BY 4.0

Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Red-winged Starling and Tristram's Starling.