The Polynesian starling (Aplonis tabuensis) is a species of starling of the family Sturnidae. It is found in the Samoan Islands, Fiji, Niue, Tonga, the Santa Cruz Islands and Wallis and Futuna. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and tropical moist forests. Various subspecies exist throughout this wide range, some darker in coloration and some lighter. Its call is a raspy buzz or rattle. Diet is fruit and insects.[2]
On islands where the Samoan starling is present, the Polynesian starling is less conspicuous and keeps to the forest, feeding on harder, less edible fruit.
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Taxonomy
The Polynesian starling was formally described in 1788 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the shrikes in the genusLanius and coined the binomial nameLanius tabuensis.[4][5] The specific epithet is from the toponym Tongatapu, one of the main islands of Tonga.[6] Gmelin based his account on the "Tabuan shrike" that had been described in 1781 by the English ornithologist John Latham in his book A General Synopsis of Birds. Latham had examined a specimen from "Tongo Taboo" (Tongatapu) that was held by the Leverian Museum in London.[7] The Polynesian starling is now placed in the genus Aplonis that was introduced in 1836 by John Gould.[8]
^Craig, P. "Natural History Guide to American Samoa"(PDF). National Park of American Samoa, Department Marine and Wildlife Resources, American Samoa Community College. Retrieved 16 August 2009.
