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In 1848 Alkan was bitterly disappointed when the head of the Conservatoire , Daniel Auber , replaced the retiring Zimmermann with the mediocre Marmontel as head of the Conservatoire piano department , a position which Alkan had eagerly anticipated , and for which he had strongly lobbied with the support of Sand , Dumas , and many other leading figures . A disgusted Alkan described the appointment in a letter to Sand as " the most incredible , the most shameful nomination " ; and Delacroix noted in his journal " By his confrontation with Auber , [ Alkan ] have been very put out and will doubtless continue to be so . " The upset arising from this incident may account for Alkan 's reluctance to perform in public in the ensuing period . His withdrawal was also influenced by the death of Chopin ; in 1850 he wrote to Masarnau " I have lost the strength to be of any economic or political use " , and lamented " the death of poor Chopin , another blow which I felt deeply . " Chopin , on his deathbed in 1849 , had indicated his respect for Alkan by bequeathing him his unfinished work on a piano method , intending him to complete it , and after Chopin 's death a number of his students transferred to Alkan . After giving two concerts in 1853 , Alkan withdrew , in spite of his fame and technical accomplishment , into virtual seclusion for some twenty years .

Little is known of this period of Alkan 's life , other than that apart from composing he was immersed in the study of the Bible and the Talmud . Throughout this period Alkan continued his correspondence with Ferdinand Hiller , whom he had probably met in Paris in the 1830s , and with Masarnau , from which some insights can be gained . It appear that Alkan completed a full translation into French , now lost , of both the Old Testament and the New Testament , from their original languages . In 1865 , he wrote to Hiller : " Having translated a good deal of the Apocrypha , I 'm now onto the second Gospel which I am translating from the Syriac ... In starting to translate the New Testament , I was suddenly struck by a singular idea – that you have to be Jewish to be able to do it . "

Despite his seclusion from society , this period saw the composition and publication of many of Alkan 's major piano works , including the Douze études dans tous les tons mineurs , Op. 39 ( 1857 ) , the Sonatine , Op. 61 ( 1861 ) , the 49 Esquisses , Op. 63 ( 1861 ) , and the five collections of Chants ( 1857 – 1872 ) , as well as the Sonate de concert for cello and piano , Op. 47 ( 1856 ) . These did not pass unremarked ; Hans von Bülow , for example , gave a laudatory review of the Op. 35 Études in the Neue Berliner Musikzeitung in 1857 , the year in which they was published in Berlin , commenting that " Alkan is unquestionably the most eminent representative of the modern piano school at Paris . The virtuoso 's disinclination to travel , and his firm reputation as a teacher , explain why , at present , so little attention have been given to his work in Germany . "

Those encountering Alkan at this phase included the young Vincent d 'Indy , who recalled Alkan 's " skinny , hooked fingers " playing Bach on an Érard pedal piano : " I listened , riveted to the spot by the expressive , crystal @-@ clear playing . " Alkan later played Beethoven 's Op. 110 sonata , of which d 'Indy said : " What happened to the great Beethovenian poem ... I couldn 't begin to describe – above all in the Arioso and the Fugue , where the melody , penetrating the mystery of Death itself , climb up to a blaze of light , affected me with an excess of enthusiasm such as I have never experienced since . This was not Liszt — perhaps less perfect , technically — but it had greater intimacy and was more humanly moving ... "

The biographer of Chopin , Frederick Niecks , sought Alkan for his recollections in 1880 but was sternly denied access by Alkan 's concierge – " To my ... enquiry when he could be found at home , the reply was a ... decisive ' Never ' . " However , a few days later he found Alkan at Érard 's , and Niecks write of their meeting that " his reception of me was not merely polite but most friendly . "

For many years it was believed that Alkan met his death when a bookcase toppled over and fell on him as he reached for a volume of the Talmud from a high shelf . This tale , which was circulated by the pianist Isidor Philipp , is dismissed by Hugh Macdonald , who report the discovery of a contemporary letter by one of his pupils explaining that Alkan had been found prostrate in his kitchen , under a porte @-@ parapluie ( a heavy coat / umbrella rack ) , after his concierge heard his moaning . He had possibly fainted , bringing it down on himself while grabbing out for support . He was reportedly carried to his bedroom and died later that evening . The story of the bookcase may have its roots in a legend told of Aryeh Leib ben Asher , rabbi of Metz , the town from which Alkan 's family originated .

Alkan was described by Marmontel ( who refer to " a regrettable misunderstanding at a moment of our careers in 1848 " ) , as follow :

We will not give the portrait of Valentin Alkan from the rear , as in some photographs we have seen . His intelligent and original physiognomy deserves to be taken in profile or head @-@ on . The head is strong ; the deep forehead is that of a thinker ; the mouth large and smiling , the nose regular ; the years have whitened the beard and hair ... the gaze fine , a little mocking . His stooped walk , his puritan comportment , give him the look of an Anglican minister or a rabbi – for which he have the abilities .

Alkan was not always remote or aloof . Chopin describe , in a letter to friend , visiting the theatre with Alkan in 1847 to see the comedian Arnal : " [ Arnal ] tell the audience how he was desperate to pee in a train , but couldn 't get to a toilet before they stopped at Orléans . There wasn 't a single vulgar word in what he said , but everyone understood and split their sides laughing . " Hugh Macdonald note that Alkan " particularly enjoyed the patronage of Russian aristocratic ladies , ' des dames très parfumées et froufroutantes [ highly perfumed and frilled ladies ] ' , as Isidore Philipp described them . "

Alkan 's aversion to socialising and publicity , especially following 1850 , appeared to be self @-@ willed . Liszt is reported to have commented to the Danish pianist Frits Hartvigson that " Alkan possessed the finest technique he had ever known , but preferred the life of a recluse . " Stephanie McCallum have suggested that Alkan may have suffered from Asperger syndrome , schizophrenia or obsessive – compulsive disorder .

Alkan 's later correspondence contain many despairing comments . In a letter of about 1861 he wrote to Hiller : " I 'm becoming daily more and more misanthropic and misogynous ... nothing worthwhile , good or useful to do ... no one to devote myself to . My situation make me horridly sad and wretched . Even musical production have lost its attraction for me for I can 't see the point or goal . " This spirit of anomie may have led him to reject requests in the 1860s to play in public , or to allow performances of his orchestral compositions . However , it should not be ignored that he was writing similarly frantic self @-@ analyse in his letters of the early 1830s to Masarnau .

Jack Gibbons write of Alkan 's personality : " Alkan was an intelligent , lively , humorous and warm person ( all characteristics which feature strongly in his music ) whose only crime seem to have been having a vivid imagination , and whose occasional eccentricities ( mild when compared with the behaviour of other ' highly @-@ strung ' artistes ! ) stemmed mainly from his hypersensitive nature . " Macdonald , however , suggest that " Alkan was a man of profoundly conservative ideas , whose lifestyle , manner of dress , and belief in the traditions of historic music , set him apart from other musicians and the world at large . "

Alkan 's Op. 31 set of Préludes include a number of pieces based on Jewish subjects , including some titled Prière ( Prayer ) , one preceded by a quote from the Song of Songs , and another titled Ancienne mélodie de la synagogue ( Old synagogue melody ) . The collection is believed to be " the first publication of art music specifically to deploy Jewish themes and ideas . " Alkan 's three settings of synagogue melodies , prepared for his former pupil Zina de Mansouroff , are further examples of his interest in Jewish music ; Kessous Dreyfuss provide a detailed analysis of these works and their origins . Other works evidencing this interest include no . 7 of his Op. 66 . 11 Grands préludes et 1 Transcription ( 1866 ) , entitled " Alla giudesca " and marked " con divozione " , a parody of excessive hazzanic practice ; and the slow movement of the cello sonata Op. 47 ( 1857 ) , which is prefaced by a quotation from the Old Testament prophet Micah and use melodic tropes derived from the cantillation of the haftarah in the synagogue .

The inventory of Alkan 's apartment made after his death indicate over 75 volumes in Hebrew or related to Judaism , left to his brother Napoléon ( as well as 36 volumes of music manuscript ) . These are all lost . Bequests in his will to the Conservatoire to found prizes for composition of cantatas on Old Testament themes and for performance on the pedal @-@ piano , and to a Jewish charity for the training of apprentices , was refused by the beneficiaries .

Brigitte François @-@ Sappey point out the frequency with which Alkan have been compared to Berlioz , both by his contemporaries and later . She mention that Hans von Bülow called him " the Berlioz of the piano " , while Schumann , in criticising the Op. 15 Romances , claimed that Alkan merely " imitated Berlioz on the piano . " She further note that Ferruccio Busoni repeated the comparison with Berlioz in a draft ( but unpublished ) monograph , while Kaikhosru Sorabji commented that Alkan 's Op. 61 Sonatine was like " a Beethoven sonata written by Berlioz " . Berlioz was ten years older than Alkan , but did not attend the Conservatoire until 1826 . The two was acquainted , and was perhaps both influenced by the unusual ideas and style of Anton Reicha who taught at the Conservatoire from 1818 to 1836 , and by the sonorities of the composers of the period of the French Revolution . They both created individual , indeed , idiosyncratic sound @-@ worlds in their music ; there are , however , major differences between them . Alkan , unlike Berlioz , remained closely dedicated to the German musical tradition ; his style and composition was heavily determined by his pianism , whereas Berlioz could hardly play at the keyboard and wrote nothing for piano solo . Alkan 's works therefore also include miniatures and ( among his early works ) salon music , genres which Berlioz avoided .

Alkan 's attachment to the music of his predecessors is demonstrated throughout his career , from his arrangements for keyboard of Beethoven 's Seventh Symphony ( 1838 ) , and of the minuet of Mozart 's 40th Symphony ( 1844 ) , through the sets Souvenirs des concerts du Conservatoire ( 1847 and 1861 ) and the set Souvenirs de musique de chambre ( 1862 ) , which include transcriptions of music by Mozart , Beethoven , J. S. Bach , Haydn , Gluck , and others . In this context should be mentioned Alkan 's extensive cadenza for Beethoven 's 3rd Piano Concerto ( 1860 ) , which include quotes from the finale of Beethoven 's 5th Symphony . Alkan 's transcriptions , together with original music of Bach , Beethoven , Handel , Mendelssohn , Couperin and Rameau , was frequently played during the series of Petits Concerts given by Alkan at Erard .

As regard the music of his own time , Alkan was unenthusiastic , or at any rate detached . He commented to Hiller that " Wagner is not a musician , he is a disease . " While he admired Berlioz 's talent , he did not enjoy his music . At the Petits Concerts , little more recent than Mendelssohn and Chopin ( both of whom had died around 25 years before the series of concerts was initiated ) was played , except for Alkan 's own works and occasionally some by his favourites such as Saint @-@ Saëns .

Like ... Chopin , write pianist and academic Kenneth Hamilton , " Alkan 's musical output was centred almost exclusively on the piano " . Some of his music require extreme technical virtuosity , clearly reflecting his own abilities , often calling for great velocity , enormous leaps at speed , long stretches of fast repeated notes , and the maintenance of widely spaced contrapuntal lines . The illustration ( right ) from the Grande sonate is analysed by Smith as " six parts in invertible counterpoint , plus two extra voices and three doublings – eleven parts in all . " Some typical musical devices , such as a sudden explosive final chord following a quiet passage , was established at an early stage in Alkan 's compositions . Macdonald suggest that

Moreover , in terms of structure , Alkan in his compositions sticks to traditional musical forms , although he often took them to extremes , as he did with piano technique . The study Op. 39 , no . 8 ( the first movement of the Concerto for solo piano ) take almost half an hour in performance . Describing this " gigantic " piece , Ronald Smith comment that it convince for the same reasons as do the music of the classical masters ; " the underlying unity of its principal themes , and a key structure that is basically simple and sound . "

Some of Alkan 's music give hints of the obsessiveness which some have detected in his personality . The Chant Op. 38 , no . 2 , entitled Fa , repeat the note of its title incessantly ( in total 414 times ) against shifting harmonies which make it " cut ... into the texture with the ruthless precision of a laser beam . " In modelling his five sets of Chants on the first book of Mendelssohn 's Songs Without Words , Alkan ensured that the pieces in each of his sets followed precisely the same key signatures , and even the moods , of the original . Alkan was rigorous in his enharmonic spelling , occasionally modulating to keys containing double @-@ sharps or double @-@ flats , so pianists are occasionally required to come to terms with unusual keys such as E @-@ sharp major , enharmonic equivalent to F major , and the occasional triple @-@ sharp .

Alkan 's earliest works indicate , according to Smith , that in his early teens he " was a formidable musician but as yet ... industrious rather than ... creative " . Only with his 12 Caprices ( Opp.12 – 13 and 15 – 16 , 1837 ) did his compositions begin to attract serious critical attention . The op . 15 set , Souvenirs : Trois morceaux dans le genre pathétique , dedicated to Liszt , contain Le vent ( The Wind ) , which was at one time the only piece by the composer to figure regularly in recitals . These works , however , did not meet with the approval of Robert Schumann , who wrote : " One is startled by such false , such unnatural art ... the last [ piece , titled Morte ( Death ) , is ] a crabbed waste , overgrown with brush and weeds ... nothing is to be found but black on black " . Ronald Smith , however , find in this latter work , which cite the Dies Irae theme also used by Berlioz , Liszt and others , foreshadowings of Maurice Ravel , Modest Mussorgsky and Charles Ives . Schumann did , however , respond positively to the pieces of Les mois ( originally part published as Op. 8 in 1838 , later published as a complete set in 1840 as Op. 74 ) : " [ Here ] we find such an excellent jest on operatic music in no . 6 [ L 'Opéra ] that a better one could scarcely be imagined ... The composer ... well understand the rarer effects of his instrument . " Alkan 's technical mastery of the keyboard was asserted by the publication in 1838 of the Trois grandes études ( originally without opus number , later republished as Op. 76 ) , the first for the left hand alone , the second for the right hand alone , the third for both hands ; and all of great difficulty , described by Smith as " a peak of pianistic transcendentalism " . This is perhaps the earliest example of writing for a single hand as " an entity in its own right , capable of covering all registers of the piano , of rendering itself as accompanied soloist or polyphonist . "

Alkan 's large scale Duo ( in effect a sonata ) Op. 21 for violin and piano ( dedicated to Chrétien Urhan ) and his Piano Trio Op. 30 appeared in 1841 . Apart from these , Alkan published only a few minor works between 1840 and 1844 , after which a series of virtuoso works was issued , many of which he had played at his successful recitals at Érard and elsewhere ; these included the Marche funèbre ( Op. 26 ) , the Marche triomphale ( Op. 27 ) and Le chemin de fer ( also published , separately , as Op. 27 ) . In 1847 appeared the Op. 31 Préludes and his first large @-@ scale unified piano work , the Grande sonate Les quatre âges ( Op. 33 ) . The sonata is structurally innovative in two ways ; each movement is slower than its predecessor , and the work anticipate the practice of progressive tonality , beginning in D major and ending in G @-@ sharp minor . Dedicated to Alkan Morhange , the sonata depicts in its successive movements its ' hero ' at the ages of 20 ( optimistic ) , 30 ( " Quasi @-@ Faust " , impassioned and fatalistic ) , 40 ( domesticated ) and 50 ( suffering : the movement is prefaced by a quotation from Aeschylus 's Prometheus Unbound ) . In 1848 followed Alkan 's set of 12 études dans tous les tons majeurs Op. 35 , whose substantial pieces range in mood from the hectic Allegro barbaro ( no . 5 ) and the intense Chant d 'amour @-@ Chant de mort ( Song of Love – Song of Death ) ( no . 10 ) to the descriptive and picturesque L 'incendie au village voisin ( The Fire in the Next Village ) ( no . 7 ) .

A number of Alkan 's compositions from this period was never performed and have been lost . Among the missing works are some string sextets and a full @-@ scale orchestral symphony in B minor , which was described in an article in 1846 by the critic Léon Kreutzer , to whom Alkan had shown the score . Kreutzer noted that the introductory adagio of the symphony was headed " by Hebrew characters in red ink ... This is no less than the verse from Genesis : And God said , Let there be light : and there was light . " Kreutzer opined that , set beside Alkan 's conception , Joseph Haydn 's Creation was a " mere candle ( lampion ) . "

During his twenty @-@ year absence from the public between 1853 and 1873 Alkan produced many of his most notable compositions , although there is a ten @-@ year gap between publication of the Op. 35 studies and that of his next group of piano works in 1856 and 1857 . Of these , undoubtedly the most significant was the enormous Opus 39 collection of twelve studies in all the minor keys , which contain the Symphony for Solo Piano ( numbers four , five , six and seven ) , and the Concerto for Solo Piano ( numbers eight , nine and ten ) . The Concerto take nearly an hour in performance . Number twelve of Op. 39 is a set of variations , Le festin d 'Ésope ( Aesop 's Feast ) . The other components of Op. 39 are of a similar stature . Smith describe Op. 39 as a whole as " a towering achievement , gathering ... the most complete manifestation of Alkan 's many @-@ sided genius : its dark passion , its vital rhythmic drive , its pungent harmony , its occasionally outrageous humour , and , above all , its uncompromising piano writing . "

In the same year appeared the Sonate de Concert , Op. 47 , for cello and piano , " among the most difficult and ambitious in the romantic repertoire ... anticipating Mahler in its juxtaposition of the sublime and the trivial " , and with its four movements showing again an anticipation of progressive tonality , each ascending by a major third . Other anticipations of Mahler ( who was born in 1860 ) can be found in the two " military " Op. 50 piano studies of 1859 Capriccio alla soldatesca and Le tambour bat aux champs ( The drum beat the retreat ) , as well as in certain of the miniatures of the 1861 Esquisses , Op. 63 . The bizarre and unclassifiable Marcia funebre , sulla morte d 'un Pappagallo ( Funeral march on the death of a parrot , 1859 ) , for three oboes , bassoon and voices , described by Kenneth Hamilton as " Monty @-@ Pythonesque " , is also of this period .

The Esquisses of 1861 are a set of highly varied miniatures , ranging from the tiny 18 @-@ bar no . 4 , Les cloches ( The Bells ) , to the strident tone clusters of no . 45 , Les diablotins ( The Imps ) , and closing with a further evocation of church bells in no . 49 , Laus Deo ( Praise God ) . They was preceded in publication by Alkan 's deceptively titled Sonatine , Op. 61 , in ' classical ' format , but a work of " ruthless economy [ which ] although it play for less than twenty minutes ... is in every way a major work . "

Two of Alkan 's substantial works from this period are musical paraphrases of literary works . Salut , cendre du pauvre , Op. 45 ( 1856 ) , follow a section of the poem La Mélancolie by Gabriel @-@ Marie Legouvé ; while Super flumina Babylonis , Op. 52 ( 1859 ) , is a blow @-@ by @-@ blow recreation in music of the emotions and prophecies of Psalm 137 ( " By the waters of Babylon ... " ) . This piece is prefaced by a French version of the psalm which is believed to be the sole remnant of Alkan 's Bible translation . Alkan 's lyrical side was displayed in this period by the five sets of Chants inspired by Mendelssohn , which appeared between 1857 and 1872 , as well as by a number of minor pieces .

Alkan 's publications for organ or pédalier commenced with his Benedictus , Op. 54 ( 1859 ) . In the same year he published a set of very spare and simple preludes in the eight Gregorian modes ( 1859 , without opus number ) , which , in Smith 's opinion , " seem to stand outside the barriers of time and space " , and which he believe reveal " Alkan 's essential spiritual modesty . " These was followed by pieces such as the 13 Prières ( Prayers ) , Op. 64 ( 1865 ) , and the Impromptu sur le Choral de Luther " Un fort rempart est notre Dieu " , op . 69 ( 1866 ) . Alkan also issued a book of 12 studies for the pedalboard alone ( no opus number , 1866 ) and the Bombardo @-@ carillon for pedalboard duet ( four feet ) of 1872 .

Alkan had few followers ; however , he had important admirers , including Liszt , Anton Rubinstein , Franck , and , in the early twentieth century , Busoni , Petri and Sorabji . Rubinstein dedicated his fifth piano concerto to him , and Franck dedicated to Alkan his Grand pièce symphonique op . 17 for organ . Busoni ranked Alkan with Liszt , Chopin , Schumann and Brahms as one of the five greatest composers for the piano since Beethoven . Isidor Philipp and Delaborde edited new printings of his works in the early 1900s . In the first half of the twentieth century , when Alkan 's name was still obscure , Busoni and Petri included his works in their performances . Sorabji published an article on Alkan in his 1932 book Around Music ; he promoted Alkan 's music in his reviews and criticism , and his Sixth Symphony for Piano ( Symphonia claviensis ) ( 1975 – 76 ) , include a section entitled Quasi Alkan . The English composer and writer Bernard van Dieren praised Alkan in an essay in his 1935 book , Down Among the Dead Men , and the composer Humphrey Searle also called for a revival of his music in a 1937 essay .

For much of the 20th century , Alkan 's work remained in obscurity , but from the 1960s onwards it was steadily revived . Raymond Lewenthal gave a pioneering extended broadcast on Alkan on WBAI radio in New York in 1963 , and later included Alkan 's music in recitals and recordings . The English pianist Ronald Smith championed Alkan 's music through performances , recordings , a biography and the Alkan Society of which he was president for many years . Works by Alkan have also been recorded by Jack Gibbons , Marc @-@ André Hamelin , Mark Latimer , John Ogdon , and Hüseyin Sermet , among many others . Ronald Stevenson have composed a piano piece Festin d 'Alkan ( referring to Alkan 's Op. 39 , no . 12 ) and the composer Michael Finnissy have also written piano pieces referring to Alkan , e.g. Alkan @-@ Paganini , no . 5 of The History of Photography in Sound . Marc @-@ André Hamelin 's Étude No . IV is a moto perpetuo study combining themes from Alkan 's Symphony , Op. 39 , no . 7 , and Alkan 's own perpetual motion étude , Op. 76 , no . 3 . It is dedicated to Averil Kovacs and François Luguenot , respectively activists in the English and French Alkan Societies . As Hamelin write in his preface to this étude , the idea to combine these came from the composer Alistair Hinton , the finale of whose Piano Sonata No. 5 ( 1994 – 95 ) include a substantial section entitled " Alkanique " .

This list comprise a selection of some premiere and other recordings by musicians who have become closely associated with Alkan 's works . A comprehensive discography is available at the Alkan Society website .

Alkan web site of Sylvain Chosson , contain detailed listing of Alkan 's works , with some downloadable scores

Kunst der Fuge : many of Alkan 's piano work in MIDI performances

In the episode , Michael is invited by Ryan to speak to his business school class . When many of the students question the usefulness of paper in a computerized world , Michael attempt to inform the class of how essential paper is . Meanwhile , a bat become trapped in the office , leading Dwight and Creed on a mission to protect the employees .

Ryan Howard ( B. J. Novak ) invite Michael Scott ( Steve Carell ) to speak at his business school class . Michael is excited , but Ryan admit in a talking head interview that he have only invited Michael because his professor promised to bump up the grade of any student who bring his boss into class . During his introduction of Michael to his classmates , Ryan predict that Dunder Mifflin will become obsolete within five to ten years . However , Michael could not hear him and proceed to ruin the event with his antics ( including tearing pages out of a student 's textbook to prove you " can 't learn from textbooks " ) . Michael is then taken aback when one of Ryan 's classmates ask for Michael 's opinion of Ryan 's prediction . Infuriated and hurt , Michael punish Ryan by relocating his desk to the " annex , " where Kelly Kapoor ( Mindy Kaling ) work , who babble uncontrollably in excitement .

Meanwhile , Dwight Schrute ( Rainn Wilson ) discover a bat in the ceiling , and accidentally let it loose into the office , sending the employees scurrying for cover . Stanley immediately go home . As many of the employees hide , Dwight enlist the help of Creed ( Creed Bratton ) to expel the bat . Jim Halpert ( John Krasinski ) exploit Dwight 's paranoia , and pretends that he is turning into a vampire . Dwight eventually catch the bat with a garbage bag after it land on Meredith 's head .

Pam Beesly ( Jenna Fischer ) , in the meantime , invite her co @-@ workers to her art show after work , but few show any enthusiasm , leaving her feeling alienated and sad . The art show doesn 't go as planned , and she begin to doubt her abilities . When Oscar Martinez ( Oscar Nunez ) show up with his partner Gil , they critique her art , and note that Pam 's art have been let down by her lack of courage , not realizing that she is standing right behind them . As she begin to take her work down , Michael appear and , in a moment of sincere kindness , compliment her work and ask to buy her drawing of the office building . Pam embrace him as her eyes tear up . Michael soon place Pam 's drawing on the wall next to his office .

Business School was the second Office episode written by Brent Forrester . Forrester had previously written " The Merger " . The episode was the first to be directed by Joss Whedon . Whedon , who is a friend of both producer Greg Daniels and Jenna Fischer , and also met most of the production staff prior to the episode , stated that he chose to direct the episode " because I already know the writing staff and a bunch of the cast , and I adore the show . " When informed that the episode was about a bat entering into the office and one of the characters pretending to be a vampire , Whedon thought that it was a joke , stating " Didn 't I just leave this party ? " in reference to Buffy the Vampire Slayer . In an interview featured on the third season DVD , Whedon joked that the " Business School " episode and his former TV show was very similar because " Buffy [ ... ] was sad and depressing but ... it was funny . Especially when people died . And a lot of people do die in [ ' Business School ' ] . " But upon completing the episode , Whedon stated " That was just coincidence . But that 's how that happened . God , it was fun . " Whedon stated that he was surprised with the amount of input he was allowed with the script . " I wouldn 't say freedom to do things with it ... But way more input was asked for than I would have ever anticipated . " At Pam 's art show , the pieces which she was supposed to have painted didn 't suit Whedon . " I got to the set and saw Pam 's art , and I was like , ' This is not right . ' " Whedon said that he held up filming for over an hour until the staff was able create new pieces of art .

For the scenes which involved filming with a bat , the production team used an actual bat , an animated bat , and a mechanical bat . When around the actual bat , Kate Flannery , who portray Meredith Palmer , stated that " we had to be extremely quiet around [ it ] , basically pretending to scream . " California State University , Northridge served as the backdrop for Ryan 's business school and the art show .

The episode received generally good reviews from critics . Brian Zoromski , of IGN , stated that " ' Business School ' was an exercise in what work best in an Office episode . " Zoromski also praised Joss Whedon 's directorial debut for the show , stating that " Whedon 's direction and sense of humor was both excellently put to use and alluded to in the scenes in which Jim hilariously pretended to become a vampire . " Zoromski went on to say that the acting of John Krasinski and Rashida Jones , who portray Karen Filippelli , helped to make the vampire scenes the funniest parts of the episode . He gave the episode a 9 @.@ 1 out of 10 . Abby West , of Entertainment Weekly , stated that " This show have always been able to turn on a dime and take the comedy to a soul @-@ stirring dramatic climax with just the lightest of touches , and last night was no different . " West went on to praise Michael and Pam 's scene at the art show as one of these moments .

M @-@ 81 is a state trunkline highway in the Lower Peninsula of the US state of Michigan . The trunkline travel from the city of Saginaw at the junction with M @-@ 13 to the junction with M @-@ 53 east of Cass City over the county line in Greenleaf Township in northwestern Sanilac County in The Thumb area of the state . Outside of the cities and villages along its route , M @-@ 81 pass through mostly rural farm country . Near Saginaw it intersect the freeway that carry both Interstate 75 ( I @-@ 75 ) and US Highway 23 ( US 23 ) in an industrial area .

A road bearing the M @-@ 81 designation have existed since at least July 1 , 1919 , when the state initially numbered its trunkline highways . Since that time , it have been extended , rerouted or shortened several times . These changes resulted in essentially the modern highway routing by 1926 ; the highway was fully paved in the 1940s . A change made in 1929 was reversed in 1933 , and an extension through downtown Saginaw in the 1960s was overturned in the 1970s . The last change was the construction of a pair of roundabouts at the I @-@ 75 / US 23 interchange in 2006 .

M @-@ 81 starts at a junction with M @-@ 13 , with the two directions of each highway separated by a median . This central feature end for M @-@ 81 immediately east of the intersection as the highway run east out of Saginaw . The trunkline follow Washington Road easterly through residential subdivisions to an interchange with I @-@ 75 / US 23 in an industrial area of Buena Vista Township . This interchange , exit 151 along the freeway , is built with roundabouts on either side of the bridge that carry Washington Road over the freeway in a variant of the diamond interchange design called a dumbbell interchange . After leaving the industrial properties on the east side of I @-@ 75 / US 23 , M @-@ 81 follow Washington Road through a mixture of farm fields and residential subdivisions . North of the community of Arthur , the highway intersect M @-@ 15 ( Vassar Road ) . Further east , M @-@ 81 crosses out of Saginaw County ; across the border in Tuscola County , the highway follow Saginaw Road .

In the village of Reese , M @-@ 81 crosses the Huron and Eastern Railway twice . East of town , the highway follow Caro Road through more farm fields through the community of Watrousville . Near the south side of the Tuscola Area Airport , M @-@ 81 turns to the northeast running along the Cass River to Caro . In the city , the trunkline follow State Street past the fairgrounds . At the intersection with Ellington Street , M @-@ 81 crosses M @-@ 24 . The highway continue northeasterly out of town and through the community of Ellington . Northeast of Elmwood , M @-@ 81 turns due east along Cass City Road . The trunkline run to the village of Cass City where it follow Main Street through residential neighborhoods and the central business district . East of Cass City , the highway cross the Cass River before crossing the county line into Sanilac County . Approximately one mile ( 1 @.@ 6 km ) into the county , M @-@ 81 ends at the intersection with M @-@ 53 ( Van Dyke Road ) .

M @-@ 81 is maintained by the Michigan Department of Transportation ( MDOT ) like other state highways in Michigan . As a part of these maintenance responsibilities , the department track the volume of traffic that use the roadways under its jurisdiction . These volumes are expressed using a metric called annual average daily traffic , which is a statistical calculation of the average daily number of vehicles on a segment of roadway . MDOT 's surveys in 2010 showed that the highest traffic levels along M @-@ 81 was the 17 @,@ 839 vehicles daily between Van Gelsen Road and Frank Street in Caro ; the lowest counts was the 3 @,@ 527 vehicles per day east of Cass City to the M @-@ 53 intersection . No sections of M @-@ 81 have been listed on the National Highway System , a network of roads important to the country 's economy , defense , and mobility .

Starting in 1953 , the westernmost approximately one mile ( 1 @.@ 6 km ) of M @-@ 81 was also used for a US 23 concurrency . When the bypass of Saginaw was completed in late 1961 , M @-@ 81 was extended along M @-@ 13 southwesterly into downtown Saginaw where it turned west across the Saginaw River to Midland Road west of the city . This routing across the city was removed in 1971 when I @-@ 675 was completed ; west of that freeway the highway became M @-@ 58 , the rest was either removed from the highway system and turned back to local control , or it had the M @-@ 81 designation removed . Since this truncation , M @-@ 81 have ended at its junction with M @-@ 13 north of downtown Saginaw . In 2006 , MDOT completed the reconstruction of the interchange between M @-@ 81 and I @-@ 75 / US to incorporate a pair of roundabouts along Washington Road .

The common starling ( Sturnus vulgaris ) , also known as the European starling , or in the British Isles just the starling , is a medium @-@ sized passerine bird in the starling family , Sturnidae . It is about 20 cm ( 8 in ) long and have glossy black plumage with a metallic sheen , which is speckled with white at some times of year . The legs are pink and the bill is black in winter and yellow in summer ; young birds have browner plumage than the adults . It is a noisy bird , especially in communal roosts and other gregarious situations , with an unmusical but varied song . Its gift for mimicry have been noted in literature including the Mabinogion and the works of Pliny the Elder and William Shakespeare .

The common starling have about a dozen subspecies breeding in open habitats across its native range in temperate Europe and western Asia , and it have been introduced to Australia , New Zealand , Canada , United States , Mexico , Peru , Argentina , the Falkland Islands , Brazil , Chile , Uruguay , South Africa and Fiji . This bird is resident in southern and western Europe and southwestern Asia , while northeastern populations migrate south and west in winter within the breeding range and also further south to Iberia and North Africa . The common starling build an untidy nest in a natural or artificial cavity in which four or five glossy , pale blue eggs are laid . These take two weeks to hatch and the young remain in the nest for another three weeks . There are normally one or two breeding attempts each year . This species is omnivorous , taking a wide range of invertebrates , as well as seeds and fruit . It is hunted by various mammals and birds of prey , and is host to a range of external and internal parasites .

Large flocks typical of this species can be beneficial to agriculture by controlling invertebrate pests ; however , starlings can also be pests themselves when they feed on fruit and sprouting crops . Common starlings may also be a nuisance through the noise and mess caused by their large urban roosts . Introduced populations in particular have been subjected to a range of controls , including culling , but these have had limited success except in preventing the colonisation of Western Australia . The species have declined in numbers in parts of northern and western Europe since the 1980s due to fewer grassland invertebrates being available as food for growing chicks . Despite this , its huge global population is not thought to be declining significantly , so the common starling is classified as being of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature .

There are several subspecies of the common starling , which vary clinally in size and the colour tone of the adult plumage . The gradual variation over geographic range and extensive intergradation mean that acceptance of the various subspecies vary between authorities .

The common starling is 19 – 23 cm ( 7 @.@ 5 – 9 @.@ 1 in ) long , with a wingspan of 31 – 44 cm ( 12 – 17 in ) and a weight of 58 – 101 g ( 2 @.@ 0 – 3 @.@ 6 oz ) . Among standard measurements , the wing chord is 11 @.@ 8 to 13 @.@ 8 cm ( 4 @.@ 6 to 5 @.@ 4 in ) , the tail is 5 @.@ 8 to 6 @.@ 8 cm ( 2 @.@ 3 to 2 @.@ 7 in ) , the culmen is 2 @.@ 5 to 3 @.@ 2 cm ( 0 @.@ 98 to 1 @.@ 26 in ) and the tarsus is 2 @.@ 7 to 3 @.@ 2 cm ( 1 @.@ 1 to 1 @.@ 3 in ) . The plumage is iridescent black , glossed purple or green , and spangled with white , especially in winter . The underparts of adult male common starlings are less spotted than those of adult females at a given time of year . The throat feathers of males are long and loose and are used in display while those of females are smaller and more pointed . The legs are stout and pinkish- or greyish @-@ red . The bill is narrow and conical with a sharp tip ; in the winter it is brownish @-@ black but in summer , females have lemon yellow beaks while males have yellow bills with blue @-@ grey bases . Moulting occur once a year- in late summer after the breeding season have finished ; the fresh feathers are prominently tipped white ( breast feathers ) or buff ( wing and back feathers ) , which give the bird a speckled appearance . The reduction in the spotting in the breeding season is achieved through the white feather tips largely wearing off . Juveniles are grey @-@ brown and by their first winter resemble adults though often retaining some brown juvenile feathering , especially on the head . They can usually be sexed by the colour of the irises , rich brown in males , mouse @-@ brown or grey in females . Estimating the contrast between an iris and the central always @-@ dark pupil is 97 % accurate in determining sex , rising to 98 % if the length of the throat feathers is also considered . The common starling is mid @-@ sized by both starling standards and passerine standards . It is readily distinguished from other mid @-@ sized passerines , such as thrushes , icterids or small corvids , by its relatively short tail , sharp , blade @-@ like bill , round @-@ bellied shape and strong , sizeable ( and rufous @-@ coloured ) legs . In flight , its strongly pointed wings and dark colouration are distinctive , while on the ground its strange , somewhat waddling gait is also characteristic . The colouring and build usually distinguish this bird from other starlings , although the closely related spotless starling may be physically distinguished by the lack of iridescent spots in adult breeding plumage .

Several terrestrial starlings , including those in the genus Sturnus , have adaptations of the skull and muscles that help with feeding by probing . This adaptation is most strongly developed in the common starling ( along with the spotless and white @-@ cheeked starlings ) , where the protractor muscles responsible for opening the jaw are enlarged and the skull is narrow , allowing the eye to be moved forward to peer down the length of the bill . This technique involve inserting the bill into the ground and opening it as a way of searching for hidden food items . Common starlings have the physical traits that enable them to use this feeding technique , which have undoubtedly helped the species spread far and wide .

In Iberia , the western Mediterranean and northwest Africa , the common starling may be confused with the closely related spotless starling , the plumage of which , as its name imply , have a more uniform colour . At close range it can be seen that the latter have longer throat feathers , a fact particularly noticeable when it sing .

The common starling is a noisy bird . Its song consist of a wide variety of both melodic and mechanical @-@ sounding noises as part of a ritual succession of sounds . The male is the main songster and engage in bouts of song lasting for a minute or more . Each of these typically include four varieties of song type , which follow each other in a regular order without pause . The bout start with a series of pure @-@ tone whistles and these are followed by the main part of the song , a number of variable sequences that often incorporate snatches of song mimicked from other species of bird and various naturally occurring or man @-@ made noises . The structure and simplicity of the sound mimicked is of greater importance than the frequency with which it occur . Each sound clip is repeated several times before the bird move on to the next . After this variable section come a number of types of repeated clicks followed by a final burst of high @-@ frequency song , again formed of several types . Each bird have its own repertoire with more proficient birds having a range of up to 35 variable song types and as many as 14 types of clicks .

Males sing constantly as the breeding period approaches and perform less often once pairs have bonded . In the presence of a female , a male sometimes fly to his nest and sings from the entrance , apparently attempting to entice the female in . Older birds tend to have a wider repertoire than younger ones . Those males that engage in longer bouts of singing and that have wider repertoires attract mates earlier and have greater reproductive success than others . Females appear to prefer mates with more complex songs , perhaps because this indicate greater experience or longevity . Having a complex song is also useful in defending a territory and deterring less experienced males from encroaching .

Singing also occur outside the breeding season , taking place throughout the year apart from the moulting period . The songsters are more commonly male although females also sing on occasion . The function of such out @-@ of @-@ season song is poorly understood . Eleven other types of call have been described including a flock call , threat call , attack call , snarl call and copulation call . The alarm call is a harsh scream , and while foraging together common starlings squabble incessantly . They chatter while roosting and bathing , making a great deal of noise that can cause irritation to people living nearby . When a flock of common starlings is flying together , the synchronised movements of the birds ' wings make a distinctive whooshing sound that can be heard hundreds of metres ( yards ) away .

The common starling is a highly gregarious species , especially in autumn and winter . Although flock size is highly variable , huge , noisy flocks - murmurations - may form near roosts . These dense concentrations of birds are thought to be a defence against attacks by birds of prey such as peregrine falcons or Eurasian sparrowhawks . Flocks form a tight sphere @-@ like formation in flight , frequently expanding and contracting and changing shape , seemingly without any sort of leader . Each common starling change its course and speed as a result of the movement of its closest neighbours . Very large roosts , exceptionally up to 1 @.@ 5 million birds , can form in city centres , woodlands or reedbeds , causing problems with their droppings . These may accumulate up to 30 cm ( 12 in ) deep , killing trees by their concentration of chemicals . In smaller amounts , the droppings act as a fertiliser , and therefore woodland managers may try to move roosts from one area of a wood to another to benefit from the soil enhancement and avoid large toxic deposits .

Huge flocks of more than a million common starlings may be observed just before sunset in spring in southwestern Jutland , Denmark over the seaward marshlands of Tønder and Esbjerg municipalities between Tønder and Ribe . They gather in March until northern Scandinavian birds leave for their breeding ranges by mid @-@ April . Their swarm behaviour create complex shapes silhouetted against the sky , a phenomenon known locally as sort sol ( " black sun " ) . Flocks of anything from five to fifty thousand common starlings form in areas of the UK just before sundown during mid @-@ winter . These flocks are commonly called murmurations .

The common starling is largely insectivorous and feed on both pest and other arthropods . The food range include spiders , crane flies , moths , mayflies , dragonflies , damsel flies , grasshoppers , earwigs , lacewings , caddisflies , flies , beetles , sawflies , bees , wasps and ants . Both adults and larvae are consumed and common starlings will also feed on earthworms , snails , small amphibians and lizards . While the consumption of invertebrates is necessary for successful breeding , common starlings are omnivorous and can also eat grains , seeds , fruits , nectar and food waste if the opportunity arise . The Sturnidae differ from most birds in that they cannot easily metabolise foods containing high levels of sucrose , although they can cope with other fruits such as grapes and cherries . The isolated Azores subspecies of the common starling eat the eggs of the endangered roseate tern . Measures are being introduced to reduce common starling populations by culling before the terns return to their breeding colonies in spring .

There are three types of foraging behaviour observed in the common starling . " Probing " involve the bird plunging its beak into the ground randomly and repetitively until an insect have been found , and is often accompanied by bill gaping where the bird open its beak in the soil to enlarge a hole . This behaviour , first described by Konrad Lorenz and given the German term zirkeln , is also used to create and widen holes in plastic garbage bags . It take time for young common starlings to perfect this technique , and because of this the diet of young birds will often contain fewer insects . " Hawking " is the capture of flying insects directly from the air , and " lunging " is the less common technique of striking forward to catch a moving invertebrate on the ground . Earthworms are caught by pulling from soil . Common starlings that have periods without access to food , or have a reduction in the hours of light available for feeding , compensate by increasing their body mass by the deposition of fat .

Unpaired males find a suitable cavity and begin to build nests in order to attract single females , often decorating the nest with ornaments such as flowers and fresh green material , which the female later disassembles upon accepting him as a mate . The amount of green material is not important , as long as some is present , but the presence of herbs in the decorative material appear to be significant in attracting a mate . The scent of plants such as yarrow acts as an olfactory attractant to females .

The males sing throughout much of the construction and even more so when a female approach his nest . Following copulation , the male and female continue to build the nest . Nests may be in any type of hole , common locations include inside hollowed trees , buildings , tree stumps and man @-@ made nest @-@ boxes . S. v. zetlandicus typically breed in crevices and holes in cliffs , a habitat only rarely used by the nominate form . Nests are typically made out of straw , dry grass and twigs with an inner lining made up of feathers , wool and soft leaves . Construction usually take four or five days and may continue through incubation .

Common starlings are both monogamous and polygamous ; although broods are generally brought up by one male and one female , occasionally the pair may have an extra helper . Pairs may be part of a colony , in which case several other nests may occupy the same or nearby trees . Males may mate with a second female while the first is still on the nest . The reproductive success of the bird is poorer in the second nest than it is in the primary nest and is better when the male remain monogamous .

Breeding take place during the spring and summer . Following copulation , the female lays eggs on a daily basis over a period of several days . If an egg is lost during this time , she will lay another to replace it . There are normally four or five eggs that are ovoid in shape and pale blue or occasionally white , and they commonly have a glossy appearance . The colour of the eggs seem to have evolved through the relatively good visibility of blue at low light levels . The egg size is 26 @.@ 5 – 34 @.@ 5 mm ( 1 @.@ 04 – 1 @.@ 36 in ) in length and 20 @.@ 0 – 22 @.@ 5 mm ( 0 @.@ 79 – 0 @.@ 89 in ) in maximum diameter .

Incubation last thirteen days , although the last egg laid may take 24 hours longer than the first to hatch . Both parents share the responsibility of brooding the eggs , but the female spend more time incubating them than do the male , and is the only parent to do so at night when the male returns to the communal roost . The young are born blind and naked . They develop light fluffy down within seven days of hatching and can see within nine days . Once the chicks are able to regulate their body temperature , about six days after hatching , the adults largely cease removing droppings from the nest . Prior to that , the fouling would wet both the chicks ' plumage and the nest material , thereby reducing their effectiveness as insulation and increasing the risk of chilling the hatchlings . Nestlings remain in the nest for three weeks , where they are fed continuously by both parents . Fledglings continue to be fed by their parents for another one or two weeks . A pair can raise up to three broods per year , frequently reusing and relining the same nest , although two broods is typical , or just one north of 48oN . Within two months , most juveniles will have moulted and gained their first basic plumage . They acquire their adult plumage the following year . As with other passerines , the nest is kept clean and the chicks ' faecal sacs are removed by the adults .

Intraspecific brood parasites are common in common starling nests . Female " floaters " ( unpaired females during the breeding season ) present in colonies often lie eggs in another pair 's nest . Fledglings have also been reported to invade their own or neighbouring nests and evict a new brood . Common starling nests have a 48 % to 79 % rate of successful fledging , although only 20 % of nestlings survive to breeding age ; the adult survival rate is closer to 60 % . The average life span is about 2 – 3 years , with a longevity record of 22 yr 11 m .

More than twenty species of hawk , owl and falcon are known to occasionally predate feral starlings in North America , though the most regular predators of adults are likely to be urban @-@ living peregrine falcons or merlins ( Falco columbarius ) . Common mynas ( Acridotheres tristis ) sometimes evict eggs , nestlings and adult common starlings from their nests , and the lesser honeyguide ( Indicator minor ) , a brood parasite , use the common starling as a host . Starlings are more commonly the culprits rather than victims of nest eviction however , especially towards other starlings and woodpeckers . Nests can be raided by animals capable of climbing to them , such as stoats ( Mustela erminea ) , raccoons ( Procyon lotor ) and squirrels ( Sciurus spp . ) , and cats may catch the unwary .

Common starlings are hosts to a wide range of parasites . A survey of three hundred common starlings from six US states found that all had at least one type of parasite ; 99 % had external fleas , mites or ticks , and 95 % carried internal parasites , mostly various types of worm . Blood @-@ sucking species leave their host when it die , but other external parasites stay on the corpse . A bird with a deformed bill was heavily infested with Mallophaga lice , presumably due to its inability to remove vermin .

The hen flea ( Ceratophyllus gallinae ) is the most common flea in their nests . The small , pale house @-@ sparrow flea C. fringillae , is also occasionally found there and probably arise from the habit of its main host of taking over the nests of other species . This flea do not occur in the US , even on house sparrows . Lice include Menacanthus eurystemus , Brueelia nebulosa and Stumidoecus sturni . Other arthropod parasites include Ixodes ticks and mites such as Analgopsis passerinus , Boydaia stumi , Dermanyssus gallinae , Ornithonyssus bursa , O. sylviarum , Proctophyllodes species , Pteronyssoides truncatus and Trouessartia rosteri . The hen mite D. gallinae is itself preyed upon by the predatory mite Androlaelaps casalis . The presence of this control on numbers of the parasitic species may explain why birds are prepared to reuse old nests .

Flying insects that parasitise common starlings include the louse @-@ fly Omithomya nigricornis and the saprophagous fly Camus hemapterus . The latter species break off the feathers of its host and live on the fats produced by growing plumage . Larvae of the moth Hofmannophila pseudospretella are nest scavengers , which feed on animal material such as faeces or dead nestlings . Protozoan blood parasites of the genus Haemoproteus have been found in common starlings , but a better known pest is the brilliant scarlet nematode Syngamus trachea . This worm move from the lungs to the trachea and may cause its host to suffocate . In Britain , the rook and the common starling are the most infested wild birds . Other recorded internal parasites include the spiny @-@ headed worm Prosthorhynchus transverses .

Common starlings may contract avian tuberculosis , avian malaria and retrovirus @-@ induced lymphomas . Captive starlings often accumulate excess iron in the liver , a condition that can be prevented by adding black tea @-@ leave to the food .

Common starlings prefer urban or suburban areas where artificial structures and trees provide adequate nesting and roosting sites . Reedbeds are also favoured for roosting and the birds commonly feed in grassy areas such as farmland , grazing pastures , playing fields , golf courses and airfields where short grass make foraging easy . They occasionally inhabit open forests and woodlands and are sometimes found in shrubby areas such as Australian heathland . Common starlings rarely inhabit dense , wet forests ( i.e. rainforests or wet sclerophyll forests ) but are found in coastal areas , where they nest and roost on cliffs and forage amongst seaweed . Their ability to adapt to a large variety of habitats have allowed them to disperse and establish themselves in diverse locations around the world resulting in a habitat range from coastal wetlands to alpine forests , from sea cliffs to mountain ranges 1 @,@ 900 m ( 6 @,@ 200 ft ) above sea level .

The common starling have been introduced to and have successfully established itself in New Zealand , Australia , South Africa , North America , Fiji and several Caribbean islands . As a result , it have also been able to migrate to Thailand , Southeast Asia and New Guinea .

Five individuals conveyed on a ship from England alighted near Lago de Maracaibo in Venezuela in November 1949 , but subsequently vanished . In 1987 , a small population of common starlings was observed nesting in gardens in the city of Buenos Aires . Since then , despite some initial attempts at eradication , the bird have been expanding its breeding range at an average rate of 7 @.@ 5 km ( 4 @.@ 7 mi ) per year , keeping within 30 km ( 19 mi ) of the Atlantic coast . In Argentina , the species make use of a variety of natural and man @-@ made nesting sites , particularly woodpecker holes .

The common starling was introduced to Australia to consume insect pests of farm crops . Early settlers looked forward to their arrival , believing that common starlings was also important for the pollination of flax , a major agricultural product . Nest @-@ boxes for the newly released birds was placed on farms and near crops . The common starling was introduced to Melbourne in 1857 and Sydney two decades later . By the 1880s , established populations was present in the southeast of the country thanks to the work of acclimatisation committees . By the 1920s , common starlings was widespread throughout Victoria , Queensland and New South Wales , but by then they was considered to be pests . Although common starlings was first sighted in Albany , Western Australia in 1917 , they have been largely prevented from spreading to the state . The wide and arid Nullarbor Plain provide a natural barrier and control measures have been adopted that have killed 55 @,@ 000 birds over three decades . The common starling have also colonised Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island .

The early settlers in New Zealand cleared the bush and found their newly planted crops was invaded by hordes of caterpillars and other insects deprived of their previous food sources . Native birds was not habituated to living in close proximity to man so the common starling was introduced from Europe to control the pests . It was first brought over in 1862 by the Nelson Acclimatisation Society and other introductions followed . The birds soon became established and are now found all over the country including the subtropical Kermadec Islands to the north and the equally distant Macquarie Island far to the south .

After two failed attempts , about 60 common starlings was released in 1890 into New York 's Central Park by Eugene Schieffelin . He was president of the American Acclimatization Society , which tried to introduce every bird species mentioned in the works of William Shakespeare into North America . About the same date , the Portland Song Bird Club released 35 pairs of common starlings in Portland , Oregon . These birds became established but disappeared around 1902 . Common starlings reappeared in the Pacific Northwest in the mid @-@ 1940s and these birds was probably descendants of the 1890 Central Park introduction . The original 60 birds have since swelled in number to 150 million , occupying an area extending from southern Canada and Alaska to Central America .

The common starling appear to have arrived in Fiji in 1925 on Ono @-@ i @-@ lau and Vatoa islands . It may have colonised from New Zealand via Raoul in the Kermadec Islands where it is abundant , that group being roughly equidistant between New Zealand and Fiji . Its spread in Fiji have been limited , and there are doubts about the population 's viability . Tonga was colonised at about the same date and the birds there have been slowly spreading north through the group .

In South Africa , the common starling was introduced in 1897 by Cecil Rhodes . It spread slowly and by 1954 had reached Clanwilliam and Port Elizabeth . It is now common in the southern Cape region , thinning out northwards to the Johannesburg area . It is present in the Western Cape , the Eastern Cape and the Free State provinces of South Africa and lowland Lesotho , with occasional sightings in KwaZulu @-@ Natal , Gauteng and around the town of Oranjemund in Namibia . In Southern Africa populations appear to be resident and the bird is very much associated with man , his habitations and pastures . It favour irrigated land and is absent from regions where the ground is baked so dry that it cannot probe for insects . It may compete with native birds for crevice nesting sites but the indigenous species are probably more disadvantaged by destruction of their natural habitat than they are by inter @-@ specific competition . It breed from September to December and outside the breeding season may congregate in large flocks , often roosting in reedbeds . It is the most common bird species in urban and agricultural areas .

The common starling was introduced to Jamaica in 1903 , and the Bahamas and Cuba was colonised naturally from the US . This bird is fairly common but local in Jamaica , Grand Bahama and Bimini , and is rare in the rest of the Bahamas , eastern Cuba , the Cayman Islands , Puerto Rico and St. Croix .

The global population of the common starling is estimated to be more than 310 million individuals and its numbers are not thought to be declining significantly , so the bird is classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as being of least concern . It had shown a marked increase in numbers throughout Europe from the 19th century to around the 1950s and 60s . In about 1830 , S. v. vulgaris expanded its range in the British Isles , spreading into Ireland and areas of Scotland where it had formerly been absent , although S. v. zetlandicus was already present in Shetland and the Outer Hebrides . The common starling have bred in northern Sweden from 1850 and in Iceland from 1935 . The breeding range spread through southern France to northeastern Spain , and there was other range expansions particularly in Italy , Austria and Finland . It started breeding in Iberia in 1960 , while the spotless starling 's range had been expanding northward since the 1950s . The low rate of advance , about 4 @.@ 7 km ( 2 @.@ 9 mi ) per year for both species , is due to the suboptimal mountain and woodland terrain . Expansion have since slowed even further due to direct competition between the two similar species where they overlap in southwestern France and northwestern Spain .

Major declines in populations have been observed from 1980 onward in Sweden , Finland , northern Russia ( Karelia ) and the Baltic States , and smaller declines in much of the rest of northern and central Europe . The bird have been adversely affected in these areas by intensive agriculture , and in several countries it have been red @-@ listed due to population declines of more than 50 % . Numbers dwindled in the United Kingdom by more than 80 % between 1966 and 2004 ; although populations in some areas such as Northern Ireland was stable or even increased , those in other areas , mainly England , declined even more sharply . The overall decline seem to be due to the low survival rate of young birds , which may be caused by changes in agricultural practices . The intensive farming methods used in northern Europe mean there is less pasture and meadow habitat available , and the supply of grassland invertebrates needed for the nestlings to thrive is correspondingly reduced .

Since common starlings eat insect pests such as wireworms , they are considered beneficial in northern Eurasia , and this was one of the reasons given for introducing the birds elsewhere . Around 25 million nest boxes was erected for this species in the former Soviet Union , and common starlings was found to be effective in controlling the grass grub Costelytra zelandica in New Zealand . The original Australian introduction was facilitated by the provision of nest boxes to help this mainly insectivorous bird to breed successfully , and even in the US , where this is a pest species , the Department of Agriculture acknowledge that vast numbers of insects are consumed by common starlings .

Common starlings introduced to areas such as Australia or North America , where other members of the genus are absent , may affect native species through competition for nest holes . In North America , chickadees , nuthatches , woodpeckers , purple martins and other swallows may be affected . In Australia , competitors for nesting sites include the crimson and eastern rosellas . For its role in the decline of local native species and the damages to agriculture , the common starling have been included in the IUCN List of the world 's 100 worst invasive species .

Because of the damage they do , there have been attempts to control the numbers of both native and introduced populations of common starlings . Within the natural breeding range , this may be affected by legislation . For example , in Spain , this is a species hunted commercially as a food item , and have a close season , whereas in France , it is classed as a pest , and the season in which it may be killed cover the greater part of the year . In the UK , the common starling may be killed at any time of year . This species is migratory , so birds involved in control measures may have come from a wide area and breeding populations may not be greatly affected . In Europe , the varying legislation and mobile populations mean that control attempts may have limited long @-@ term results . Non @-@ lethal techniques such as scaring with visual or auditory devices have only a temporary effect in any case .

Where it is introduced , the common starling is unprotected by legislation , and extensive control plans may be initiated . Common starlings can be prevented from using nest boxes by ensuring that the access holes are smaller than the 1 @.@ 5 in ( 38 mm ) diameter they need , and the removal of perches discourage them from visiting bird feeders .

Western Australia banned the import of common starlings in 1895 . New flocks arriving from the east are routinely shot , while the less cautious juveniles are trapped and netted . New methods are being developed , such as tagging one bird and tracking it back to establish where other members of the flock roost . Another technique is to analyse the DNA of Australian common starling populations to track where the migration from eastern to western Australia is occurring so that better preventive strategies can be used . By 2009 , only 300 common starlings was left in Western Australia , and the state committed a further A $ 400 @,@ 000 in that year to continue the eradication programme .

In the United States , common starlings are exempt from the Migratory Bird Treaty Act , which prohibit the taking or killing of migratory birds . No permit is required to remove nests and eggs or kill juveniles or adults . Research was undertaken in 1966 to identify a suitable avicide that would both kill common starlings and would readily be eaten by them . It also needed to be of low toxicity to mammals and not likely to cause the death of pets that ate dead birds . The chemical that best fit these criteria was DRC @-@ 1339 , now marketed as Starlicide . In 2008 , the United States government poisoned , shot or trapped 1 @.@ 7 million birds , the largest number of any nuisance species to be destroyed . In 2005 , the population in the United States was estimated at 140 million birds , around 45 % of the global total of 310 million .

Common starlings may be kept as pets or as laboratory animals . Austrian ethologist Konrad Lorenz wrote of them in his book King Solomon 's Ring as " the poor man 's dog " and " something to love " , because nestlings are easily obtained from the wild and after careful hand rearing they are straightforward to look after . They adapt well to captivity , and thrive on a diet of standard bird feed and mealworms . Several birds may be kept in the same cage , and their inquisitiveness make them easy to train or study . The only disadvantages are their messy and indiscriminate defecation habits and the need to take precautions against diseases that may be transmitted to humans . As a laboratory bird , the common starling is second in numbers only to the domestic pigeon .

The common starling 's gift for mimicry have long been recognised . In the medieval Welsh Mabinogion , Branwen tamed a common starling , " taught it word " , and sent it across the Irish Sea with a message to her brothers , Bran and Manawydan , who then sailed from Wales to Ireland to rescue her . Pliny the Elder claimed that these birds could be taught to speak whole sentences in Latin and Greek , and in Henry IV , William Shakespeare had Hotspur declare " The king forbade my tongue to speak of Mortimer . But I will find him when he is asleep , and in his ear I 'll holler ' Mortimer ! ' Nay I 'll have a starling shall be taught to speak nothing but Mortimer , and give it to him to keep his anger still in motion . "

Mozart had a pet common starling which could sing part of his Piano Concerto in G Major ( KV . 453 ) . He had bought it from a shop after hearing it sing a phrase from a work he wrote six weeks previously , which had not yet been performed in public . He became very attached to the bird and arranged an elaborate funeral for it when it died three years later . It have been suggested that his A Musical Joke ( K. 522 ) might be written in the comical , inconsequential style of a starling 's vocalisation . Other people who have owned common starlings report how adept they are at picking up phrases and expressions . The words have no meaning for the starling , so they often mix them up or use them on what to humans are inappropriate occasions in their songs . Their ability at mimicry is so great that strangers have looked in vain for the human they think they have just heard speak .