Editing Spotless starling (section)

==Description==

The adult spotless starling is very similar to the common starling, but marginally larger (21–23&nbsp;cm length; 70–100&nbsp;g weight), and has darker, oily-looking black plumage, slightly purple- or green-glossed in bright light, which is entirely spotless in spring and summer, and only with very small pale spots in winter plumage, formed by the pale tips of the feathers. It also differs in having conspicuously longer throat feathers (twice the length of those on common starlings<ref name=Hoyo/>), forming a shaggy "beard" which is particularly obvious when the bird is singing. Its legs are bright pink. In summer, the bill is yellow with a bluish base in males and a pinkish base in females; in winter, it is duller, often blackish. Young birds are dull brown, darker than young common starlings, and have a black bill and brown legs.<ref name=Snow/><ref name=Blasco>Blasco-Zumeta, J., & Heinze, G.-M. (undated). Laboratorio Virtual Ibercaja [http://aulaenred.ibercaja.es/wp-content/uploads/417_SpotlessStarlingSunicolor.pdf 417 Spotless Starling]</ref> Confusion with the common starling is particularly easy during the winter, when common starlings are abundant throughout the spotless starling's range, but also in summer where their breeding ranges overlap in northeastern [[Spain]] and the far southwest of [[France]].<ref name=Snow/> It can also be confused with the [[common blackbird]] (''Turdus merula''), which differs most obviously in its longer tail and lack of plumage gloss.<ref name=Blasco/>

Like the common starling, it walks rather than hops, and has a strong direct flight, looking triangular-winged and short-tailed. It is a noisy bird and a good mimic; its calls are similar to the common starling's, but louder.<ref name=Snow/>