• Summary
• Text account
• Data table and detailed info
• Distribution map
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• Reference and further resources

Justification of Red List category
This species has a large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence under 20,000 km² combined with a declining or fluctuating range size, habitat extent/quality, or population size and a small number of locations or severe fragmentation). The population size is large, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion (under 10,000 mature individuals with a continuing decline estimated to be over 10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). The population trend is not known, but the population is not believed to be decreasing sufficiently rapidly to approach the thresholds under the population trend criterion (over 30% decline over ten years or three generations). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern.

Population justification
It is described as locally common. Based on the predicted distribution and population density the total population has been estimated at 623,295, or more conservatively, 402,705 individuals (G. Buchanan in prep.). Placed in the band 100,000-499,999 individuals. The population trend is difficult to determine because of uncertainty over the impacts of habitat modification on population sizes.

Trend justification
The population trend is difficult to determine because of uncertainty over the impacts of habitat modification on population sizes.

This species is known from west and south-east Guinea, Sierra Leone and west-central Côte d'Ivoire. In 1970, it was described as having a localised distribution, but being quite common where it occurred (Hall and Moreau 1970);  in Sierra Leone, non-breeding flocks of up to 50 birds are sometimes recorded (Wilkinson in press). It is now considered localised and generally scarce (Butchart 2007). Recent reports have included flocks of up to 100 at Mt Sangbé National Park, Côte d'Ivoire, in spring 2001 (Demey 2001) and June 2002 (Demey 2003); a single bird plus a flock of 10 in wooded savanna at two sites in Pic de Fon Forest Reserve, Guinea, in November and December 2002 (Demey and Rainey 2004), and several records from Sierra Leone including a flock at Bumbuna in 2005, and another two flocks on the Bumbuna-Magbuaka road in 2006 (Butchart 2007). Surveys in Sierra Leone in 2012 and 2013 recorded the species in Bumbuna, Kabala, Outamba and Kilimi (Fisher et al. 2013). It is thought that the species's range is smaller in the west but potentially more extensive in the east than was previously known with a potential distribution of 78,500 km² to 121,500 km² depending on the threshold used by the model to determine suitable habitat (G. Buchanan in prep.).

It is found in orchard bush and wooded and open savanna, where it keeps to the tops of tall trees, often using dead trees for perches (Hall and Moreau 1970, P. Robertson verbally 1998, Wilkinson in press). A recent survey in Sierra Leone found that the species used kola nut trees Cola spp., kapok trees Ceiba pentandra, locust trees Parkia biglobosa and red ironwood Lophira alata (Fisher et al. 2013). It avoids forests but is occasionally found at the edge of gallery forest (Wilkinson in press) and in a mosaic of habitats including savannah woodland, shrubland and agricultural land (Fisher et al. 2013). It frequently feeds on fruit, particularly Ficus and Harungana berries and seeds and, less frequently, on insects, particularly ants, foraging in bare ground in areas that have been burnt (Hall and Moreau 1970, Wilkinson in press).

There are reports of this species being caught for the wild bird trade: from 1981-1984 large numbers, probably from Guinea, were kept by bird traders in Monrovia, Liberia (Gatter 1997), and birds have been reported to trade at c.£50 per pair. This relatively low price implies a large volume of the species are in trade, and the effects of this on the wild population have not yet been assessed (R. Wilkinson in litt. 1998). A recent survey suggested that trade in the species in Guinea may be more important than in Sierra Leone (Fisher et al. 2013). Mining activities in the Lake Sonfon and Outamba areas in Sierra Leone could threaten the species (Bowler et al. 2013).

Conservation and Research Actions Underway
None is known.

Conservation and Research Actions Proposed
Determine this species's tolerance to forest degradation. Assess the numbers of birds in trade. Initiate a year long study at a single site to learn patterns of seasonal movement and abundance. Protect suitable habitat if appropriate.

Text account compilers
Rutherford, C.A.

Contributors
Dowsett, R., Dowsett-Lemaire, F., Rainey, H. & Wilkinson, R.

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Emerald Starling Lamprotornis iris. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/emerald-starling-lamprotornis-iris on 26/11/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 26/11/2024.