Asian Glossy Starling

Asian Glossy Starling

Aplonis panayensis

Silhouette: Rafael Maia · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~90% · Very likely
at Kuching
280 Verified sightings at Kuching
2,286 In all 7 parks From 2019 to 2026
February Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Asian Glossy Starling

The Asian glossy starling (Aplonis panayensis) is a species of starling in the family Sturnidae. It is found in Bangladesh, Brunei, northeastern India (Assam), Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Cambodia and Thailand. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical mangrove forest. It has also been introduced to Taiwan.

It is 20 cm long, and weighs 50–60 g. Adults (both sexes) have glossy black plumage; juveniles are blackish-brown above, whitish heavily streaked with dark brown below. The iris is bright red in adults, except for A. p. albiris, which has a white eye; in juveniles it is yellow, orange, or pink. The subspecies vary in extent and intensity of the plumage gloss, and in the size of the bill. Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:26

Malaysia · 2026

© Ding Li Yong · XC1175360 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Duet0:41

Malaysia · 2023

© Lim Ying Hien · XC783881 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Begging call0:19

Singapore · 2022

© James Lambert · XC764670 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Bako National Park 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~70%
2 Sepilok 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~50%
3 Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~20%
4 Taman Negara National Park 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~10%
5 Kinabalu Park 🇲🇾 Malaysia
<5%
6 Khao Luang National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
<5%
7 Danum Valley Conservation Area 🇲🇾 Malaysia
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Kuching 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~90%
2 Davao City 🇵🇭 Philippines
~90%
3 Cebu City 🇵🇭 Philippines
~80%
4 Kuala Lumpur 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~70%
5 Johor Bahru 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~60%
6 Singapore 🇸🇬 Singapore
~60%
7 Kaohsiung 🇹🇼 Taiwan
~50%
8 Taipei 🇹🇼 Taiwan
~30%
9 Tainan 🇹🇼 Taiwan
~20%
10 Manila 🇵🇭 Philippines
~20%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Disney's Animal Kingdom 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
2 San Diego Zoo 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
3 Prague Zoo 🇨🇿 Czechia In captivity
4 ZooParc de Beauval 🇫🇷 France In captivity
5 Zoo Miami 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
6 Chester Zoo 🇬🇧 United Kingdom In captivity
7 Ninoy Aquino Parks & Wildlife Center 🇵🇭 Philippines In captivity
8 Gembira Loka Zoo 🇮🇩 Indonesia In captivity
9 Bandung Zoo 🇮🇩 Indonesia In captivity
10 Bird Paradise 🇸🇬 Singapore In captivity
11 Rainforest Wild Asia 🇸🇬 Singapore In captivity
12 Vogelpark Avifauna 🇳🇱 Netherlands In captivity
13 Kuala Lumpur Bird Park 🇲🇾 Malaysia In captivity
14 Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens 🇨🇳 China In captivity
15 Santillana Zoo 🇪🇸 Spain In captivity
16 Edward Youde Aviary 🇭🇰 Hong Kong SAR China In captivity
17 Rákosův pavilon 🇨🇿 Czechia In captivity
18 Velemlokárium 🇨🇿 Czechia In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing an Asian Glossy Starling in Kuching?

Very likely

About 90% of wildlife watchers report an Asian Glossy Starling sighting in Kuching on a given day, based on 280 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the most-seen of the 57 birds we can rate there.

When is the best time to see an Asian Glossy Starling in Kuching?

January–April and June

In those months over 90% of wildlife watchers report an Asian Glossy Starling in Kuching on a given day, against about 70% in May, the lowest month. December has too few records to rate.

What time of day is best to see an Asian Glossy Starling?

Between 8 and 11 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Asian Glossy Starling sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Kuching the best place to see an Asian Glossy Starling?

Yes

Of the 15 cities where we can rate Asian Glossy Starling sightings, Kuching has the highest daily chance: about 90%. Next come Davao City (Philippines, about 90%) and Cebu City (Philippines, about 80%).

Which relatives of the Asian Glossy Starling live in Kuching?

Same family: Sturnidae

The closest relatives of the Asian Glossy Starling that you can see in Kuching (family Sturnidae, Starlings) are Javan Myna (about 70%) and Common Hill Myna (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Asian Glossy Starling sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Asian Glossy Starling is recorded against all the birds logged in Kuching (280 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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