Shelley's Starling

Description:

This angry bird (or angry-looking; they were rather cute) is Shelley's Starling, one of the smaller starlings, measuring about 15 cm in length. These starlings sport dark blue glossy mantle and hood, chestnut belly and reddish eye.

Habitat:

The range of Shelley's Starling is limited to parts of Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya and Tanzania, and it choses semi-arid shrubland and savanna as habitat. Here, observed in urban setting, in a small town of Hudet, in Borena zone of Ethiopia. These birds were not tamed but almost, exploring freely the garden in the hotel.

Notes:

Once again, this was a lifer for me and the only time I recorded this species . It also looks like the first recording of this bird on Project NOAH.