NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Rarotonga Starling
Aplonis cinerascens Hartlaub & Finsch, 1871
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The Rarotonga starling (Aplonis cinerascens) is a species of starling in the family Sturnidae. It is endemic to Rarotonga in the Cook Islands.
Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is thought to have a varied diet, eating nectar, fruit and insects. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Wikipedia contributors, Rarotonga starling; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:14:59.843251+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Aplonis cinerascens Hartlaub & Finsch, 1871
- Name authority
- Hartlaub & Finsch, 1871
- Common name
- Rarotonga Starling
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Sturnidae
- Genus
- Aplonis
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familySturnidae Rafinesque, 1815
- genusAplonis Gould, 1836
- speciesAplonis cinerascens Hartlaub & Finsch, 1871
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Aplonis. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Atoll StarlingAplonis feadensis (E. P. Ramsay, 1882) | SturnidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Long-tailed StarlingAplonis magna (Schlegel, 1871) | SturnidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Samoan StarlingAplonis atrifusca (Peale, 1849) | SturnidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| White-eyed StarlingAplonis brunneicapillus (Danis, 1938) | SturnidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Violet-hooded StarlingAplonis circumscripta (A. B. Meyer, 1884) | SturnidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Kosrae Mountain StarlingAplonis corvina (Kittlitz, 1833) | SturnidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extinct |
| Tasman StarlingAplonis fusca Gould, 1836 | SturnidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extinct |
| Brown-winged StarlingAplonis grandis (Salvadori, 1881) | SturnidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Mauke StarlingAplonis mavornata Buller, 1887 | SturnidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extinct |
| Metallic StarlingAplonis metallica (Temminck, 1824) | SturnidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Moluccan StarlingAplonis mysolensis (G. R. Gray, 1862) | SturnidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Yellow-eyed StarlingAplonis mystacea (Ogilvie-Grant, 1911) | SturnidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Hartlaub, Karel Johan Gustav, & and Friedrich Hermann Otto Finsch. (1871). On a Collection of Birds from Savai and Rarotonga Islands. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, Vol. 39. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:FPJ5. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.