Editing Common starling (section)

== Status ==
The global population of the common starling is estimated to be more than 310&nbsp;million individuals and its numbers are not thought to be declining significantly, so the bird is classified by the [[International Union for Conservation of Nature]] as being of [[least concern]].<ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021" /> It had shown a marked increase in numbers throughout Europe from the 19th century to around the 1950s and 60s. In about 1830, ''S. v. vulgaris'' expanded its range in the British Isles, spreading into Ireland and areas of Scotland where it had formerly been absent, although ''S. v. zetlandicus'' was already present in [[Shetland]] and the Outer Hebrides. The common starling has bred in northern Sweden from 1850 and in Iceland from 1935. The breeding range spread through southern France to northeastern Spain, and there were other range expansions particularly in Italy, Austria and Finland.<ref name=bwpc/> It started breeding in Iberia in 1960, while the spotless starling's range had been expanding northward since the 1950s. The low rate of advance, about {{convert|4.7|km|mi|abbr=on}} per year for both species, is due to the suboptimal mountain and woodland terrain. Expansion has since slowed even further due to direct competition between the two similar species where they overlap in southwestern France and northwestern Spain.<ref name =feare183/><ref name= ferrer>{{cite journal| last1= Ferrer | first1= Xavier | last2= Motis | first2=Anna | last3=Peris | first3=Salvador J | year= 1991 | title= Changes in the breeding range of starlings in the Iberian peninsula during the last 30 years: competition as a limiting factor | journal= Journal of Biogeography | volume= 18 | issue = 6 |pages=631–636 | jstor = 2845544 | doi= 10.2307/2845544| bibcode= 1991JBiog..18..631F }}</ref>

Major declines in populations have been observed from 1980 onward in Sweden, Finland, northern Russia ([[Karelia]]) and the [[Baltic States]], and smaller declines in much of the rest of northern and central Europe.<ref name=bwpc/> The bird has been adversely affected in these areas by intensive agriculture, and in several countries it has been [[red-listed]] due to population declines of more than 50%. Numbers dwindled in the United Kingdom by more than 80% between 1966 and 2004; although populations in some areas such as [[Northern Ireland]] were stable or even increased, those in other areas, mainly England, declined even more sharply. The overall decline seems to be due to the low survival rate of young birds, which may be caused by changes in agricultural practices.<ref name=bto>{{cite web |url=http://blx1.bto.org/birdtrends/species.jsp?year=2011&s=starl |title=Starling (''Sturnus vulgaris'') |year=2012 |work=Bird Trends 2011 |publisher=British Trust for Ornithology |access-date=2013-01-03 |author1=Baillie, S R |author2=Marchant, J H |author3=Leech, D I |author4=Renwick, A R |author5=Eglington, S M |author6=Joys, A C |author7=Noble, D G |author8=Barimore, C |author9=Conway, G J |author10=Downie, I S |author11=Risely, K |author12=Robinson, R A }}</ref> The [[intensive farming]] methods used in northern Europe mean there is less pasture and meadow habitat available, and the supply of grassland invertebrates needed for the nestlings to thrive is correspondingly reduced.<ref name= granbom>{{cite journal | last1= Granbom | first1= Martin | last2= Smith | first2= Henrik G | year=2006 | title= Food limitation during breeding in a heterogeneous landscape (Escasez de alimentos durante el período reproductivo en un paisaje heterogéneo)| journal= The Auk | volume=123 | issue = 1 | pages= 97–107 |jstor = 4090631 | doi= 10.1642/0004-8038(2006)123[0097:FLDBIA]2.0.CO;2| s2cid= 85979624 | doi-access= free }}</ref>