Whilst researching the UK endangered red lists for mammals and birds, I was taken aback by the breadth of species but also how seemingly familiar and everyday some of the entries were. Hedgehogs, House Sparrows and my choice Starlings stood out in that aspect. In this year’s RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch, Starlings were the third most recorded bird and in recent months, I have seen large murmurations in Rising Sun Country Park and had a number trying to pinch my chips in Amble. Despite their seeming commonality since the 1960’s there has been a large decline in breeding pairs with a 53% population decrease reported for the period 1995-2020 (British Trust For Ornithology). Starlings have distinctive spotted plumage and are real characters being social, fast, cheeky and noisy. I’ve tried to capture some of those features in my triptych of linocuts.