Editing Common starling (section)

== Predators and parasites ==
A majority of starling predators are avian. The typical response of starling groups is to take flight, with a common sight being undulating flocks of starling flying high in quick and agile patterns. Their abilities in flight are seldom matched by birds of prey.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Powell, G V N |year=1974 |title=Experimental analysis of the social value of flocking by starlings (''Sturnus vulgaris'') in relation to predation and foraging |journal=Animal Behaviour |volume=22 |issue=2 |pages=501–505 |doi=10.1016/S0003-3472(74)80049-7 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Witter, Mark S |author2=Cuthill, Innes C |author3=Bonser, Richard H |year=1994 |title=Experimental investigations of mass-dependent predation risk in the European starling, ''Sturnus vulgaris'' |journal=Animal Behaviour |volume=48 |issue=1 |pages=201–222 |doi=10.1006/anbe.1994.1227 |s2cid=53161825 }}</ref> Adult common starlings are hunted by [[hawk]]s such as the [[northern goshawk]] (''Accipiter gentilis'') and [[Eurasian sparrowhawk]] (''Accipiter nisus''),<ref name= gensbolhawk>Génsbøl (1984) pp. 142, 151.</ref> and [[falcon]]s including the [[peregrine falcon]] (''Falco peregrinus''), [[Eurasian hobby]] (''Falco subbuteo'') and [[common kestrel]] (''Falco tinnunculus'').<ref name= gensbolfalcon>Génsbøl (1984) pp. 239, 254, 273.</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Bergman, G |year=1961 |title=The food of birds of prey and owls in Fenno-Scandia |journal=British Birds |volume=54 |issue=8 |pages=307–320 |url=http://www.britishbirds.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/article_files/V54/V54_N08/V54_N08_P307_320_A051.pdf |access-date=2015-02-20 |archive-date=2019-10-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191001215005/https://www.britishbirds.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/article_files/V54/V54_N08/V54_N08_P307_320_A051.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> Slower raptors like [[Black kite|black]] and [[red kite]]s (''Milvus migrans & milvus''), [[eastern imperial eagle]] (''Aquila heliaca''), [[common buzzard]] (''Buteo buteo'') and [[Swamp harrier|Australasian harrier]] (''Circus approximans'') tend to take the more easily caught fledglings or juveniles.<ref name= gensbolkite>Génsbøl (1984) pp. 67, 74, 162.</ref><ref name= baker>{{cite journal | last= Baker-Gabb | first= D J | year= 1981 | title= Diet of the Australasian Harrier in Manawatu-Rangitikei Sand Country | journal= Notornis | volume= 28 | issue= 4 | pages= 241–254 | url= http://notornis.osnz.org.nz/system/files/Notornis_28_4.pdf | access-date= 2012-12-31 | archive-date= 2017-04-19 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170419075458/http://notornis.osnz.org.nz/system/files/Notornis_28_4.pdf | url-status= dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Chavko, J |author2=Danko, Š |author3=Obuch, J |author4=Mihók, J |year=2012 |title=The food of the Imperial Eagle (''Aquila heliaca'') in Slovakia |journal=Slovak Raptor Journal |volume=1 |pages=1–18 |doi=10.2478/v10262-012-0001-y |s2cid=85142585 |doi-access=free }}</ref> While perched in groups by night, they can be vulnerable to owls, including the [[little owl]] (''Athene noctua''), [[long-eared owl]] (''Asio otus''), [[short-eared owl]] (''Asio flammeus''), [[Western barn owl|barn owl]] (''Tyto alba''), [[tawny owl]] (''Strix aluco'') and [[Eurasian eagle-owl]] (''Bubo bubo'').<ref>{{cite journal |author=Glue, David E |year=1972 |title=Bird prey taken by British owls |journal=Bird Study |volume=19 |issue=2 |pages=91–96 |doi=10.1080/00063657209476330 |doi-access=free |bibcode=1972BirdS..19...91G }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Marchesi, L |author2=Sergio, F |author3=Pedrini, P |year=2002 |title=Costs and benefits of breeding in human-altered landscapes for the eagle owl ''Bubo bubo'' |journal=Ibis |volume=144 |issue=4 |pages=E164–E177 |doi=10.1046/j.1474-919X.2002.t01-2-00094_2.x }}</ref>

More than twenty species of [[hawk]], [[owl]] and [[falcon]] are known to occasionally predate starlings in North America, though the most regular predators of adults are likely to be urban-living [[peregrine falcon]]s or [[Merlin (bird)|merlin]]s (''Falco columbarius'').<ref>{{cite web |url=http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna/species/048/articles/introduction |title=European Starling: The Birds of North America Online |author=Cabe, P R |publisher=The Cornell Lab of Ornithology |access-date=2013-12-30}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Sodhi, Navjot S |author2=Oliphant, Lynn W |year=1993 |title=Prey selection by urban-breeding Merlins |journal=The Auk |volume=110 |issue=4 |pages=727–735 |jstor=4088628 |doi=10.2307/4088628 }}</ref> [[Common myna]]s (''Acridotheres tristis'') sometimes evict eggs, nestlings and adult common starlings from their nests,<ref name=H1923/> and the [[lesser honeyguide]] (''Indicator minor''), a [[brood parasite]], uses the common starling as a host.<ref name = iziko/> Starlings are more commonly the culprits rather than victims of nest eviction however, especially towards other starlings and [[woodpecker]]s.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Evans, P G H |year=1988 |title=Intraspecific nest parasitism in the European starling ''Sturnus vulgaris'' |journal=Animal Behaviour |volume=36 |issue=5 |pages=1282–1294 |doi=10.1016/S0003-3472(88)80197-0 |s2cid=53153787 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Short, Lester L |year=1979 |title=Burdens of the picid hole-excavating habit |journal=The Wilson Bulletin |volume=91 |issue=1 |pages=16–28 |jstor=4161163 }}</ref> Nests can be raided by mammals capable of climbing to them, such as small mustelids (''[[Mustela]]'' spp.), [[raccoon]]s (''Procyon lotor'')<ref name= bull>{{cite journal | last1= Bull | first1= P C | last2= Flux | first2= John E C | year=2006 | title= Breeding dates and productivity of starlings (''Sturnus vulgaris'') in northern, central, and southern New Zealand | journal= Notornis | volume= 53 | pages= 208–214 | url = http://notornis.osnz.org.nz/system/files/Notornis_53_2_208.pdf }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Begg |first=Barbara |year=2009 |title=Northern Raccoon predation on European Starling nestlings in British Columbia |journal=Wildlife Afield |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=25–26 |url=http://www.wildlifebc.org/UserFiles/File/Raccoon6.1.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203012743/http://www.wildlifebc.org/UserFiles/File/Raccoon6.1.pdf |archive-date=2013-12-03 }}</ref> and [[squirrel]]s (''Sciurus'' spp.),<ref name= linz/> and cats may catch the unwary.<ref name=cats>{{cite web|title=Are cats causing bird declines? |url=http://www.rspb.org.uk/advice/gardening/unwantedvisitors/cats/birddeclines.aspx |publisher=Royal Society for the Protection of Birds |access-date=2013-01-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121215034038/http://www.rspb.org.uk/advice/gardening/unwantedvisitors/cats/birddeclines.aspx |archive-date=2012-12-15 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Common starlings are hosts to a wide range of parasites. A survey of three hundred common starlings from six US states found that all had at least one type of parasite; 99% had external fleas, mites or ticks, and 95% carried internal parasites, mostly various types of worm. [[Blood-sucking]] species leave their host when it dies, but other external parasites stay on the corpse. A bird with a deformed bill was heavily infested with ''[[Mallophaga]]'' lice, presumably due to its inability to remove vermin.<ref name= boyd>{{cite journal | last= Boyd | first= Elizabeth M | year=1951 | title= A Survey of Parasitism of the Starling ''Sturnus vulgaris'' L. in North America | journal= The Journal of Parasitology | volume= 37 | issue = 1 | pages= 56–84 | jstor = 3273522 | doi= 10.2307/3273522 | pmid= 14825028 }}</ref>

[[File:Dermanyssus gallinae mite.jpg|thumb|alt=Parasitic mite|''[[Dermanyssus gallinae]]'', a parasite of the common starling]]

The hen flea (''[[Ceratophyllus gallinae]]'') is the most common [[flea]] in their nests.<ref name =Rothschild84>Rothschild & Clay (1953) pp. 84–85.</ref> The small, pale house-sparrow flea ''C. fringillae'', is also occasionally found there and probably arises from the habit of its main host of taking over the nests of other species. This flea does not occur in the US, even on [[house sparrow]]s.<ref name =Rothschild115>Rothschild & Clay (1953) p. 115.</ref> [[Louse|Lice]] include ''Menacanthus eurystemus'', ''Brueelia nebulosa'' and ''Stumidoecus sturni''. Other arthropod parasites include ''[[Ixodes]]'' [[tick]]s and [[mite]]s such as ''Analgopsis passerinus'', ''Boydaia stumi'', ''[[Dermanyssus gallinae]]'', ''[[Ornithonyssus bursa]]'', ''O. sylviarum'', ''[[Proctophyllodes]]'' species, ''Pteronyssoides truncatus'' and ''Trouessartia rosteri''.<ref name=H1960>
Higgins ''et al'' (2006) p.[http://phthiraptera.info/Publications/47231.pdf 1960] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203032526/http://phthiraptera.info/Publications/47231.pdf |date=2013-12-03 }} .
</ref> The hen mite ''D. gallinae'' is itself preyed upon by the predatory mite ''[[Androlaelaps casalis]]''. The presence of this control on numbers of the parasitic species may explain why birds are prepared to reuse old nests.<ref name= Sparagano>Lesna, I; Wolfs, P; Faraji, F; Roy, L; Komdeur, J; Sabelis, M W. "Candidate predators for biological control of the poultry red mite ''Dermanyssus gallinae''" in Sparagano (2009) pp. 75–76.</ref>

Flying insects that parasitise common starlings include the [[Hippoboscidae|louse-fly]] ''Omithomya nigricornis''<ref name=H1960/> and the [[Saprotrophic nutrition|saprophagous]] fly ''[[Carnus hemapterus]]''. The latter species breaks off the feathers of its host and lives on the fats produced by growing plumage.<ref name = Rothschild222>Rothschild & Clay (1953) p. 222.</ref> Larvae of the moth ''[[Hofmannophila pseudospretella]]'' are nest scavengers, which feed on animal material such as [[faeces]] or dead nestlings.<ref name = Rothschild251>Rothschild & Clay (1953) p. 251.</ref> [[Protozoa]]n blood parasites of the genus ''[[Haemoproteus]]'' have been found in common starlings,<ref name = Rothschild169>Rothschild & Clay (1953) p. 169.</ref> but a better known pest is the brilliant scarlet [[nematode]] ''[[gapeworm|Syngamus trachea]]''. This worm moves from the lungs to the [[Vertebrate trachea|trachea]] and may cause its host to suffocate. In Britain, the [[Rook (bird)|rook]] and the common starling are the most infested wild birds.<ref name = Rothschild180>Rothschild & Clay (1953) pp. 180–181.</ref> Other recorded internal parasites include the spiny-headed worm ''Prosthorhynchus transverses''.<ref name = Rothschild189>Rothschild & Clay (1953) p. 189.</ref>

Common starlings may contract [[Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis|avian tuberculosis]],<ref name= shannon>{{cite journal| last1= Gaukler | first1= Shannon M | last2= Linz | first2= George M | last3= Sherwood | first3= Julie S |last4= Dyer | first4= Neil W | last5= Bleier | first5= William J | last6= Wannemuehler | first6= Yvonne M |last7= Nolan | first7= Lisa K | last8= Logue | first8= Catherine M | year=2009 | title= ''Escherichia coli'', ''Salmonella'', and ''Mycobacterium avium'' subsp.'' Paratuberculosis'' in wild European starlings at a Kansas cattle feedlot  | journal= Avian Diseases | volume= 53  | issue =4  | pages= 544–551 | url =https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1910&context=icwdm_usdanwrc | jstor = 25599161| doi= 10.1637/8920-050809-Reg.1| pmid= 20095155 | s2cid= 11558914 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Corn, Joseph L |author2=Manning, Elizabeth J |author3=Sreevatsan, Srinand |author4=Fischer, John R |year=2005 |title=Isolation of ''Mycobacterium avium'' subsp. ''paratuberculosis'' from free-ranging birds and mammals on livestock premises |journal=Applied and Environmental Microbiology |volume=71 |issue=11 |pages=6963–6967 |doi=10.1128/AEM.71.11.6963-6967.2005 |pmid=16269731 |pmc=1287718 |bibcode=2005ApEnM..71.6963C }}</ref> [[avian malaria]]<ref name = Rothschild235>Rothschild & Clay (1953) pp. 235–237.</ref><ref name= Janovy>{{cite journal | last= Janovy | first= John | year=1966 | title= Epidemiology of ''Plasmodium hexamerium'' Huff, 1935, in meadowlarks and starlings of the Cheyenne Bottoms, Barton County, Kansas | journal= Journal of Parasitology | volume= 52| issue = 3 | pages= 573–578 | jstor = 3276329 | doi= 10.2307/3276329 | pmid= 5942533 | s2cid= 34122492 | url= http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1003&context=bioscijanovy | url-access= subscription }}</ref> and [[retrovirus]]-induced [[lymphoma]]s.<ref name= wade>{{cite journal | last1= Wade | first1= Laura L | last2= Polack | first2= Evelyne W | last3= O'Connell | first3= Priscilla H | last4= Starrak | first4= Gregory S | last5= Abou-Madi | first5= Noha | last6= Schat | first6= Karel A | year=1999 | title= Multicentric lymphoma in a European Starling (''Sturnus vulgaris'') | journal= Journal of Avian Medicine and Surgery  | volume= 13 | issue = 2 | pages=108–115 |jstor = 30135214 }}</ref> Captive starlings often accumulate excess iron in the liver, a condition that can be prevented by adding black tea-leaves to the food.<ref name= crissey>{{cite journal | last1= Crissey | first1= Susan D | last2= Ward | first2= Ann M | last3= Block | first3= Susan E | last4= Maslanka | first4= Michael T | year= 2000| title= Hepatic iron accumulation over time in European starlings (''Sturnus vulgaris'') fed two levels of iron | journal= Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine | volume= 31 | issue = 4| pages= 491–496 | doi = 10.1638/1042-7260(2000)031[0491:HIAOTI]2.0.CO;2|jstor = 20096036 | issn= 1042-7260 | pmid= 11428395| s2cid= 37814865 }}</ref><ref name= siebels>{{cite journal | last1= Seibels | first1= Bob | last2= Lamberski | first2= Nadine | last3=  Gregory | first3= Christopher R | last4= Slifka | first4 = Kerri | last5 = Hagerman | year= 2003| title= Effective use of tea to limit dietary iron available to starlings (''Sturnus vulgaris'')| journal= Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine | volume=34 | issue = 3 | pages= 314–316 | doi =10.1638/02-088 |jstor =20460340 | first5= Ann E. | pmid= 14582799 | s2cid= 31559034 }}</ref>