- Acridotheres fuscus
Identification
Photo © by Alok Tewari
Amboli, Alt. 22-2500 ft, Western Ghats, Dist. Sindhudurg, Maharashtra, India, February-2019
24cm (9½ in); a greyish Myna.
- Long, bristly nasal crest
- Glossy black head
- Grey plumage, paler on rump
- Blackish-brown wings with white wing patch
- Brownish-black tail with white tip
- White undertail-coverts
- Striking pale eye
- Orange bill with dark base (making bill look short)
Sexes similar. Juveniles are muddy brown and have an all yellow bill.
Similar species
Greyer than Common Myna with no bare skin around eye. Paler than Javan Myna, also note dark bill base. Paler than Crested Myna which has dark undertail-coverts and also paler than Great Myna (note also dark bill base of Jungle Myna).
Distribution
Found on the Indian Subcontinent and east to Burma and the Malay Peninsula.
Introduced in Fiji (from where it colonized Samoa) and possibly Taiwan.
Locally common and considered a pest in parts of its range.
Taxonomy
Four subspecies recognized:
- A. f. fuscus from northern Pakistan along the Himalayan foothills to northeast India, in the hills of Rajasthan, Orissa and Bangladesh. Also in Burma
- A. f. mahrattensis in western India south to Kerala and Tamil Nadu
- A. f. fumidus in northeast India
- A. f. torquatus in peninsular Malaysia and south Thailand
Has been considered conspecific with Great Myna. Some authorities also include Javan Myna and Pale-bellied Myna in this species.
Habitat
Forest edge, deciduous woodland, tea plantations, villages, cultivated land. Occurs in lowlands and foothills, locally up to 2000m in the Himalayas.
Behaviour
Roosts communally in reedbeds, sugar cane and trees, sometimes with Common Myna or Rosy Starling.
Diet
Feeds on insects, fruit, seeds and nectar. Takes also household food scraps.
Forages on the ground, often in flocks, sometimes in pairs.
Breeding
Breeding season from January to July. A monogamous species, often multi-brooded. Often breeds in colonies. The nest is placed in a tree hole or an artifical hole. Lays 3 - 6 eggs.
Movements
A resident species with some seasonal movements in some regions.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2015. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2015, with updates to August 2015. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Del Hoyo, J, A Elliott, and D Christie, eds. 2009. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 14: Bush-shrikes to Old World Sparrows. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8496553507
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Jungle Myna. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 11 March 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Jungle_Myna
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
