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golden breasted starling

The Golden-breasted Starling, Cosmopsarus regius also known as Royal Starling is a medium-sized, up to 35cm long, passerine in the starling family. The adult has a metallic green head and upperback, bright golden yellow breast and belly, dark bill and legs, white iris and metallic violet blue on wings, back, neck and its long tail feathers. Both sexes are similar. The young is duller than adult.

The Golden-breasted Starling is distributed to the grassland, savanna and shrubland of northeast Africa, from Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya and northern Tanzania.

The female usually lays between three to five pale green eggs with red speckles. It nests in tree holes. The nest is made from leaves, roots and other vegetation matters.

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Uploaded on July 22, 2008
Taken on July 22, 2008