The horned starling is a bird from the starling family that lives in Africa south of the Sahara. During the breeding season, males develop bare skin and leathery growths on their heads.
The horned starling differs from other starlings by its bare head and growths on males only during the breeding period. It is important for nature because it destroys huge quantities of locusts and protects plants from pests.
Collects insects on the ground and in grass, sometimes catches them in flight.
meadows, prairies, forb glades on land
Immature form that undergoes metamorphosis before adulthood.
Worker
birth time
Hot and almost no precipitation
Dogs, dolphins, lynx hang out for 9-25 years and party on their birthday three times a year
m
Map
will celebrate their {n} birthday
g
t
When your next jubilee falls in {name} life years
Human
hot Africa south of the desert, many savannas and forests
days
Warm summer
How old you would be if you lived as {name}
summer from pleasant to very hot
Theoretical maximum lifespan estimated from the Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) mathematical model. This value reflects a biological potential derived from metabolic parameters, not from direct observation — real recorded lifespans are often significantly shorter.
adult
Maturity
Collects insects on the ground and in grass, sometimes catches them in flight.
plant
About health
When your next birthday would fall if you lived as {name}
Repro interval
results
aerial
summer warm, winter not very cold
Sex
Upcoming jubilees
Gremllins
mo
rains are very rare, almost a desert
little precipitation in winter, more in summer
Trophic type
Filters
summer very hot, dry, lots of grass
Warm or hot summer
Upcoming birthdays
Breeding structure built or used for laying eggs and raising offspring.
Truly long lives: 40-100 years. Bowhead whales, albatrosses, giant tortoises recall their birthday at most once a year
Lifespan
Desert and dry shrubs
Age (juvenile)
Age (from birth to death)
Age (embryo)
Wanderers
Age (larva)
Feeding occurs in open air space above ground or water.
Jubilee = every 10th birthday
berries
Earliest developmental stage inside an egg or womb.
Business sausages
fruits
Lifespan average
young after fast growth
Juvenile stage following larval metamorphosis but not yet adult.
What do they look like?
Maturity
emergence (insects)
end of lifespan
How do they live?
fertilization / egg laying
How do they behave?
birth / hatching
metamorphosis / end of larval stage
end of acceleration
Share
Find a pet...
Mature, fully developed individual capable of reproduction.
hot, uneven rains, lots of grass and trees
Egg count
Actively hunting and capturing live prey.
flight
Pets
juicy berries — bilberry, rowan, rosehip
Hot steppe
Feeding occurs primarily on land or in vegetation.
Legs size
{name} jubilee
cm
Old-timers
Find an animal or breed...
Captures prey or food items while in active flight.
turns
Rascals
terrestrial grassland and steppe
terrestrial herbaceous
insect
hot Africa south of the desert, many savannas and forests
grasshoppers and crickets
Litter size
Tropical savanna
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
How to care for them?
Living from 25 to 40 years. Orangutans, bald eagles, African elephants celebrate their birthday twice a year
°C
Not specified
Actively searching habitats to locate food items.
Egg color
Where are they found?
Down color
Low precipitation in winter
Legendary longevity: over 100 years. Galapagos tortoises, Greenland sharks, ocean quahogs celebrate with family once every 4 years
Offspring
Elders
Bro
Taxons
seeds, berries, fruits
if born as {name}
omnivore
beetles
age
birth date
Close
was
Career from 7 to 15 months. Dwarf hamsters, voles, field crickets celebrate their birthday twice a month
The basics
My weight?
Non-stop carnival: they only live a few days. Mayflies, rotifers, midges celebrate their birthday more than twice a day
primary food sources
Beak size
Potential Habitat
lots of grass, few trees, rains are rare
d
In husbandry
On the go from 1.3 to 3.5 years. Forest mice, anoles, rainbow fish party on their birthday once a month
Mass
Mosquitoes, fruit flies, small crustaceans hustle for up to 7 months and throw a birthday party every week
terrestrial
{name} birthday
No results found
On the map
all life stages
Female ♀
world of Afrotropics
termites
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
Potential habitat modelled from GBIF occurrence data. Map © Zveriki.com, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
birth year
Maturity
terrestrial habitat, land surface outside water
sq mm
yr
Beak color
How similar?
Male ♂
until the celebration
baby / chick
hawking
age as {name}
How do they breed?
On the go from 3.5 to 6 years. Hedgehogs, crows, lizards treat themselves to birthday snacks 6 times a year
Legs color
What if eaten?
Very dry
Neither
from birth to adulthood
live beetles — various species
Young offspring still dependent on parental care.
nest
What do they eat?
Where do they live?
Immature individual that has not yet reached reproductive maturity.
from birth to death
early young
Plumage color
world of Afrotropics
Duration
This is me
from 11 to 16 grams, 1.5 – 12 centimeters
Steppe
Gamers
How are they built?
mm
Theoretical lifespan
ml
Stars
Link copied
My age?
wk
My size?
terrestrial
Asexual
swap
live termites
active predation
Rabbits, falcons, red-eared turtles hang out for 6-9 years and party on their birthday four times a year
Where do they take shelter?
Head color
celebrated their {n} birthday
live grasshoppers, crickets, locusts
open grassy spaces — steppes, savannas, prairies
When you would have been born if you lived as {name}
Daddies
Lifespan maximum
very hot and almost no precipitation
foraging
Capturing or collecting food while airborne.
Hermaphrodite ⚥
Strawberry
embryo
Length
kg
very hot and dry, rare rains, cacti live
grassland
Observations
◉{N} more on tap