Violet-backed Starling vs Wattled Starling: How to Tell Them Apart

Violet-backed Starling

Cinnyricinclus leucogaster

Small44 gForest

The violet-backed starling is a sexually dimorphic species with adults reaching a length of about 18 cm (7 in). The male has an iridescent violet head and back, and pure white underparts. The female has a thrush-like appearance with brown, boldly-streaked upper parts and white, heavily-streaked underparts. Both sexes have yellow irises, and black bills and legs.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recorded by paulo kivuyo · Dawn song, song · kikatiti, Meru, Arusha Region, Tanzania · CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: (c) Derek Keats, some rights reserved (CC BY) · cc-by

Wattled Starling

Creatophora cinerea

Medium73 gShrubland

The wattled starling is 21 cm long, with a short tail and pointed wings. It has mainly grey plumage except for a white rump, and black flight feathers and tail. The breeding male has a white shoulder patch and a distinctive head pattern, with unfeathered yellow skin, and black forehead and throat wattles. The extent to which these seasonal features develop increases with the age of the bird and some old females may show a weaker version of this plumage. The non-breeding male has a feathered head except for a small yellow patch behind the eye.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Diego Rubolini · CC BY 4.0

Where you might meet both

South Africa Kenya Namibia Zimbabwe Uganda Zambia Tanzania Botswana Mozambique Eswatini Malawi Rwanda Ethiopia Congo - Kinshasa Angola Saudi Arabia Cameroon Djibouti Somalia South Sudan

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Violet-backed Starling and Wattled Starling.