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Acridotheres tristis

(Common Mynah)

Overview

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Bird. Mynas are native to India, but have been introduced all over the world, mainly for their being able to reduce the insect population in agricultural areas. However, they reduce biodiversity by competing for nesting hollows, destroying chicks and eggs and evicting small mammals.

Common Names

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Click on the language to view common names.

Common Names in Afrikaans:

Indiese Spreeu

Common Names in English:

Common Myna, Common Mynah, House Myna, House Mynah, Indian Myna, Indian Mynah, Mynah

Common Names in French:

Martin Triste

Common Names in German:

Hirtenmaina

Common Names in Japanese:

カバイロハッカ

Description

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Physical Description

Species Acridotheres tristis

The Myna is a medium sized chocolate-brown bird with a black head and neck, about 25 cm tall, with a black head and neck, a yellow beak , eye patch , feet and legs . White wing patches are obvious when the birds are flying. Mynas are distinctive because, unlike most other birds, they walk rather than hop. In the breeding season , they are strongly territorial and neighbouring pairs often fight furiously. However, in autumn and winter they often feed in flocks of 5-20 birds. These flocks can travel 10+ km between their roosting and feeding sites each day. Except for incubating females, mynas spend the night at cornmunal roosts, some of which are of 1000+ birds. Territorial birds normally have a bout of intense calling for 5-15 minutes when they arrive in their territories in the early morning. Males call more often than the females, and pairs sometimes duet. The territorial call is a rowdy medley of notes , raucous, gurgling, chattering, even bell-like, in rapid sequence. Adults with young utter a harsh "squark" and the call of flying young is a persistent "chi-chi-chi". At their communal roosts mynas maintain a noisy chattering, even well after nightfall and before dawn. In Hawke's Bay , New Zealand, some mynas (identified through colour-bands) were found to have lived over 12 years.

Habitat

Mynas are tropical birds. Although it is true that mynas are found commonly in tropical areas, it is also true that they are not restricted to these areas. They can also be found in southern European Russia and northern France (Feare 1998). Their spread however, is limited to places that are warm enough and have enough food for them, to not need to leave their nests for too long whilst incubating eggs . If they do and it is cold, the eggs will chill and fail. In New Zealand, they seemed to find it too cold around Nelson and their southern populations declined except for some individuals that were found permanently based in piggery sheds where it was warm enough and there were sufficient sources of food that they thrived (P. R. Wilson pers. comm. ) Favoured roosts are in isolated stands of tall trees . In Singapore, mynas are commonly found roosting in large clumps or long rows of tall trees with dense canopies, often of similar height and species (Hails 1985, Yap et al. 2002).

Typically found in water with a depth of 0 to -4,752 meters (0 to -15,591 feet).[1]

Biome: agricultural areas, urban areas

Ecology: List of Habitats : 1.7 Forest - Subtropical/Tropical Mangrove Vegetation Above High Tide Level

Biology

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Reproduction

Pairs stay together year after year and keep the same territory in successive years. The nest is a cup of dry grass , twigs and leaves, usually in a hole of a tree , cliff , building or other structure, but sometimes they will nest in a thick tangle of vegetation. In New Zealand laying is from mid-October to early March, mostly in November and January. Each pair usually raises two broods a year. Mynas lay 1-6 (average 4) greenish-blue eggs in the early morning. Incubation starts with the laying of the last egg, and is mainly by the female during the day, but by the female alone at night, for 13-14 days. Both parents feed the nestlings during the 20-32 (average 25) day fledging period and for upto 3 weeks after leaving the nest. Juveniles form small flocks when they become independent . Many young form pairs when nine months old, but only a few females attempt to breed in their first year.

Taxonomy

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Unambiguous Synonyms

  1. Acridotheres tristas (Linnaeus, 1766)

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name . Latest taxonomic scrutiny: 17-Oct-2001.

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Pastor

There are approximately 10 species in this genus:

Acridotheres albocinctus (White Collared Mynah) · Acridotheres burmannicus · Acridotheres cinereus · Acridotheres cristatellus (Chinese Crested Mynah) · Acridotheres fuscus (Indian Jungle Mynah) · Acridotheres ginginianus (Bank Mynah) · Acridotheres grandis (White-Vented Myna) · Acridotheres javanicus · Acridotheres melanopterus · Acridotheres tristis (Indian Mynah)

More Info

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Further Reading

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Notes

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Contributors

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal March 13, 2008:

Identifiers

Footnotes

  1. Mean = -1,256.260 meters (-4,121.588 feet), Standard Deviation = 1,191.950 based on 963 observations. Ocean depth information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]
Last Revised: 2009-06-20