| Fiery-browed starling | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Sturnidae |
| Genus: | Enodes Temminck, 1839 |
| Species: | E. erythrophris |
| Binomial name | |
| Enodes erythrophris (Temminck, 1824) | |
Thefiery-browed starling orfiery-browed myna[2] (Enodes erythrophris) is a species ofstarling in the familySturnidae. It ismonotypic within the genusEnodes. Distinguished by a reddish-orange stripe over the eye, it isendemic to theIndonesian island ofSulawesi, mainly living in humid highland forest.
Coenraad Jacob Temminck described this species by the nameLamprotornis erythrophris in 1824, and then moved it to the genusEnodes in 1839.[3] It ismonotypic within the genusEnodes, being the only species currently recognised.[4]Joseph Harvey Riley described subspeciescentralis in 1920,[5] andErwin Stresemann described subspeciesleptorhynchus in 1932. TheHandbook of the Birds of the World lists these two subspecies as "provisionally recognized" because they may only be colour variants,[6] while theIOC World Bird List does not recognise any subspecies.[4]
The fiery-browed starling is 27–29 cm (10.6–11.4 in) long. The male and female are similar. The crown, back, throat, breast and belly are dark grey. A bright reddish-orangesupercilium starts from the base of the beak and extends over the eye, the feathers behind the eye being black. Theflight feathers are brown, their outer webs and thewing coverts covering them being olive-yellow. The rump is golden, and the graduated tail is olive-yellow, with a cream tip. The beak is black, and the legs are yellow.[2]
This species is endemic to the island ofSulawesi in Indonesia. It is found at elevations of 500–2,300 m (1,600–7,500 ft), living mainly in montanerainforest and also in lowland forest,elfin forest andforest edges.[2]
This starling usually occurs in pairs or groups, and sometimes large flocks. It eats invertebrates and fruit, often climbing tree trunks to search for food. Mixed flocks with theSulawesi myna andgrosbeak starling, both also endemic to Sulawesi, have been observed at fruit-bearing trees.[2] Calls recorded includepeeep,tik tik and various guttural notes, and the song is a repeated metalliczeek zeek.[2]
This species has a small range, and its population appears to be in decline, but theInternational Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) considers that there are no substantial threats and lists it as aleast-concern species.[1]
