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Starlings Nesting in Montana

Harlow B. Mills

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Starling Nesting in Montana.-On May 15, 1943, Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) were discovered bringing food to nestlings in a cavity in a barn at the North Montana Branch Station, seven miles southwest of Havre, Montana. On the day following, a pair was seen carrying material to an opening high up on the side of a grain elevator at Laredo, a few miles southwest of the Station, and it was presumed that they were nesting at this point also. As far as I am aware this is the first record of nesting of this species in Montana.

In the course of the past five years I have had opportunity to collect a number of records of this species in Montana. The first one for the state, of which I have knowledge, is based on a bird found dead at ,Lmdsay in January, 1939. In February of the same year I examined a caged Starling which had been captured on a ranch near Great Falls. This occurrence is discussed by Wessel (Montana Farmer, 26, 1939:lO). Other records, exclusive of those given by Wright (Condor, 45, 1943: 119) are as follows:

Big Timber Stillwater County October, 1939

White Sulphur Springs Meagher County December, 1939

Sieben Lewis and Clark County March, 1940

Silesia Carbon County July, 1943

Savage Richland County July, 1943

Chinook Blaine County July, 1943

As yet, I have seen no evidence of flocking of this bird in the State, all of my records being for one or two birds. Wright (op. cit.) mentions but iive or six in the group observed by him. It would seem that as of this date the Starling is uncommon but widespread in Montana.-HARLOW B. MILLS, Departmeat of Zoology and Entomology, Motiona. State College, Boseman, Montaa, July 12, 1943.

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