Long-tailed Glossy Starling (Lamprotornis caudatus)
Illustration redrawn by AI from a real photograph

Long-tailed Glossy Starling

Lamprotornis caudatus (Müller, PLS, 1776)

≈37 cmLength121 gWeight

The adult has a metallic green back, purple belly and a very long purple tail.

Busiest months: January and November · Most records: Gambia, Senegal, Ghana

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

  1. Adult’s upperparts metallic green; underparts purple
  2. Adult’s purple tail very long, about 34 cm
  3. Adult’s face black; eyes yellow

Male, female and young

Sexes similar; juveniles are duller, with a brown tinge to the feathers.

Voice

Very noisy in flocks, with harsh, grating calls that have a rasping quality.

Where and when it's recorded

Long-tailed Glossy Starling has been recorded at 99 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 16 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

  1. Campement de WassadouSenegal505 records
  2. Mole NP – Samole Loop & waterholeGhana262 records
  3. Parc Urbain Bangr-WeoogoBurkina Faso232 records
More places
  1. Kotu CreekGambia222 records
  2. Tendaba – Tendaba CampGambia210 records
  3. Mole NP – Mole Hotel & waterholeGhana175 records
  4. Ngor – Hotel Le CalaoSenegal174 records
  5. Mole NPGhana171 records
  6. Kotu Creek – Bridge and MouthGambia167 records
  7. Senegambia Hotel Gardens and BeachGambia164 records

Countries and regions with the most records

GambiaSenegalGhanaBurkina FasoNigeriaQatarCameroonChad

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The long-tailed glossy starling (Lamprotornis caudatus) is a member of the starling family of birds. It is a resident breeder in tropical Africa from Senegal east to Sudan.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Long-tailed Glossy Starling?

The Long-tailed Glossy Starling is about ≈37 cm long and weighs around 121 g.

Where does the Long-tailed Glossy Starling live?

Its breeding range: Africa: southern Mauritania to Guinea-Bissau and east to Sudan and South Sudan. It is most often recorded in Gambia, Senegal and Ghana.

When is the best time to see the Long-tailed Glossy Starling?

At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in January and November (Northern Hemisphere).

Is the Long-tailed Glossy Starling endangered?

The IUCN Red List classifies the Long-tailed Glossy Starling as Least Concern.

What does the Long-tailed Glossy Starling eat?

Main food: Fruit.

What family is the Long-tailed Glossy Starling in?

It belongs to the family Starlings, Rhabdornises (Sturnidae), order Passerines (Passeriformes).

At a glance

Length
≈37 cm
Weight
121 g
Habitat
Woodland
Diet
Fruit
Lifestyle
Perches in trees
Migration
Resident (barely migrates)
Conservation
Least Concern
More measurements
Wing
178 mm
Tail
297 mm
Bill
26 mm
Tarsus
42 mm

Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.

Range

Africa: southern Mauritania to Guinea-Bissau and east to Sudan and South Sudan

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2

Classification

Order
Passerines Passeriformes
Family
Starlings, Rhabdornises Sturnidae
Genus
Lamprotornis

Other birds in the genus Lamprotornis

Cape StarlingCape StarlingLamprotornis nitensGreater Blue-eared StarlingGreater Blue-eared StarlingLamprotornis chalybaeusLesser Blue-eared StarlingLesser Blue-eared StarlingLamprotornis chloropterusBronze-tailed StarlingBronze-tailed StarlingLamprotornis chalcurusSplendid StarlingSplendid StarlingLamprotornis splendidusPrincipe StarlingPrincipe StarlingLamprotornis ornatusEmerald StarlingEmerald StarlingLamprotornis irisPurple StarlingPurple StarlingLamprotornis purpureusRüppell's StarlingRüppell's StarlingLamprotornis purpuropteraGolden-breasted StarlingGolden-breasted StarlingLamprotornis regiusMeves's StarlingMeves's StarlingLamprotornis mevesiiBurchell's StarlingBurchell's StarlingLamprotornis australis
Long-tailed Glossy Starling

Download illustration

Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by Nick Hobgood. ↗

WebP · 1070 px

Heard it but can't see it? Mingji identifies birds by sound and photo, on your phone.

In other languages