Starling populations have declined dramatically in many regions despite being spectacular murmuration performers. Their welfare as highly social birds depends on flock integrity and grassland food availability.
Starlings are highly social birds whose welfare depends on flock structure and the grassland habitats that support their invertebrate prey. Declines that fragment flock sizes reduce the safety and social benefits that communal roosting provides. Control of starlings in orchard contexts is often disproportionate to actual damage and disrupts social groups. Creating invertebrate-rich grassland habitats — the most effective action for starling welfare — also benefits dozens of other declining farmland birds.