Bali Starling

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iBali Starling

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Sturnidae
Genus:	Leucopsar
Species:	L. rothschildi

Binomial name

Leucopsar rothschildi
Stresemann, 1912

The Bali Starling, Leucopsar rothschildi also known as Rothschild’s Mynah, Bali Myna or Bali Mynah is a medium-sized, up to 25cm long, stocky myna, almost wholly white with a long, drooping crest, black tips on the wing and tail. The bird has blue bare skin around the eyes, greyish legs and yellow bill. Both sexes are similar.

The Bali Starling is distributed and endemic to the island of Bali in Indonesia, where it is the only endemic species of the island. This rare bird was discovered in 1910.

The scientific name commemorates the British ornithologist Lord Rothschild, whom described the bird in 1912.

In 1991, the Bali Starling was designated the faunal symbol for Bali.

The Bali Starling is critically endangered, hovering immediately above extinction in the wild since several years (BirdLife International 2006). The last stronghold of the species is at Bali Barat National Park. About 1,000 individuals are believed to survive in captivity. Its decline towards extinction has been caused by the urbanization of the island and by illegal trapping for the cage-bird trade. The Bali Starling is listed on Appendix I of CITES.

[edit] Gallery

Bristol Zoo

Milwaukee County Zoological Gardens

[edit] References

BirdLife International (2006). Leucopsar rothschildi. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is critically endangered and the criteria used