Rosy starling
Pastor roseus (Linnaeus, 1758)
The rosy starling (Pastor roseus), also called the Rose-colored or Rose-coloured starling, is a bird in the family Sturnidae and the order Passeriformes, grouped with the songbirds and other perching birds. It is a small, migratory, perching omnivore of grassland, with an adult body mass of 73 g and reported values from 65 g to 80 g.
Quick facts about the rosy starling
It lays one clutch per year of 4.2 eggs (up to 5), incubated for 15 days, and reaches sexual maturity at 363.5 days. The species is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category, and its geographic range covers 5,911,000 km².
- Weight
- 65 g – 79.6 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 11 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Omnivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- grasslandsrc for Habitat
- Egg incubation
- 15 dayssrc for Egg incubation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 4.2 – 5src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 11.9 monthssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 1src for Litters or clutches a year
- Lifestyle
- Perchingsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Migratorysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of the rosy starling
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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Where does the rosy starling live?
Not recorded
What is the rosy starling?
The rosy starling (Pastor roseus), also known as the rose-coloured starling, is a passerine bird in the starling family Sturnidae. The species was restored to its own monotypic genus Pastor in 2008, formerly being included in a wide interpretation of the genus Sturnus. This split is supported by further studies, with its closest relative now thought to be the wattled starling (Creatophora cinerea) of tropical Africa, with these two then closest to a large group of Asian starlings and mynas.
From the Wikipedia article “Rosy starling” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rosy_starling&oldid=1373669812), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the rosy starling endangered?
The rosy starling is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.
How is the rosy starling classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familySturnidae
- genusPastor
- SpeciesPastor roseus (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms Stilbo roseus, Sturnus asiaticus, Sturnus roseus, Turdus roseus
Other names and names in other languages (78)
- Rose-colored starlingEnglish
- Rose-coloured starlingEnglish
- RoosspreeuAfrikaans
- زرزور ورديArabic
- Tordo rosoAragonese
- estornín arrosáuAsturian
- АлтынғошBashkir
- Ружовы шпакBelarusian
- Розов скорецBulgarian
- গোলাপি শালিকBangla
- Dred rozBreton
- estornell rosatCatalan
- Ошалгы-якшар шӹнгӹртӹшMari
- Кӗлчечек шӑнкӑрчChuvash
- špaček růžovýCzech
- Drudwen WridogWelsh
- Drudwennod GwridogWelsh
- RosenstærDanish
- RosenstarGerman
- ΑγιοπούλιGreek
- PastoroEsperanto
- roza sturnoEsperanto
- Estornino rosadoSpanish
- roosa-kuldnokkEstonian
- سار صورتیPersian
- punakottarainenFinnish
- brandstariFaroese
- Martin roselinFrench
- Etourneau roselinFrench
- Étourneau roselinFrench
- Druid rósachIrish
- Trutlag ruissaghScottish Gaelic
- Molgh ruthManx
- વૈયુંGujarati
- זרזיר ארבהHebrew
- Škvrlj kriješvarCroatian
- pásztormadárHungarian
- Սարյակ վարդագույնArmenian
- Վարդագույն սարյակ (Թթի ղուշ)Armenian
- RósastariIcelandic
- Storno roseoItalian
- バライロムクドリJapanese
- ტარბიGeorgian
- БжэндэхъумацӀэKabardian
- АлаторғайKazakh
- 분홍찌르레기Korean
- ZerzûlKurdish
- rožinis varnėnasLithuanian
- sārtais strazdsLatvian
- Розов сколовранецMacedonian
- розев сколовранецMacedonian
- റോസ് മൈനMalayalam
- Ягаан тодолMongolian
- पळस मैनाMarathi
- ပန်းရောင်စတာလင်ဆက်ရက်Burmese
- Roze SpreeuwDutch
- Rose SpreeuwDutch
- pasterzPolish
- Pasterz różowyPolish
- estorninho-rosadoPortuguese
- LăcustarRomanian
- Розовый скворецRussian
- Скворець рожевыйRusyn
- RuvsostárraNorthern Sami
- ruksesstárraNorthern Sami
- škorec ružovýSlovak
- pastier ružovýSlovak
- rožnati škorecSlovenian
- Ružičasti čvorakSerbian
- rosenstareSwedish
- นกกิ้งโครงสีกุหลาบThai
- AlasığırcıkTurkish
- Pembe SığırcıkTurkish
- Льӧль юберUdmurt
- шпак рожевийUkrainian
- Sáo hồngVietnamese
- 粉紅椋鳥Chinese
- 粉红椋鸟Chinese
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataIUCN Red List
Relatives of the rosy starling
Other species in the same family Sturnidae.
Common starling
Sturnus vulgaris
Common myna
Acridotheres tristis
Common hill myna
Gracula religiosa
Bali starling
Leucopsar rothschildi
Violet-backed starling
Cinnyricinclus leucogaster
Spotless starling
Sturnus unicolor
CompareRosy starling vs Common starlingRosy starling vs Common mynaRosy starling vs Common hill mynaRosy starling vs Bali starling
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the rosy starling?
The rosy starling is a bird in the family Sturnidae, order Passeriformes, in the group of songbirds and other perching birds.
How heavy is a rosy starling?
An adult Rosy starling weighs 73 g, with reported values from 65 g to 80 g. It falls in the small size class.
What does the rosy starling eat?
The rosy starling is an omnivore.
What habitat does the rosy starling use?
The rosy starling lives in grassland and is a migratory, perching bird.
Is the rosy starling endangered?
No. The rosy starling is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.
How many eggs does the rosy starling lay?
The rosy starling lays 4.2 eggs per clutch, up to 5, in one clutch per year. The eggs are incubated for 15 days.
How long does the rosy starling live?
The lifespan given for the rosy starling is 11 years.
Who named the rosy starling?
The rosy starling, Pastor roseus, carries the authority (Linnaeus, 1758).
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Rosy starling (Pastor roseus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/rosy-starling
“Rosy starling (Pastor roseus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/rosy-starling.
@misc{rosy_starling_2026,
title = {Rosy starling (Pastor roseus)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/rosy-starling},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}