This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: The common myna is sometimes referred to as "Australia's most hated bird." Originally from South and Central Asia, the introduced species from the starling family is abundant, raucous and bold. Mynas thrive just about everywhere they've been introduced, from Taiwan to Mauritius to Florida.
In 2000, they made the list of the 100 worst invasive species worldwide compiled by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. This year, Queensland communities are trying to eradicate these introduced birds. But the same story has been written many times.
In 2012, Canberra residents launched their own grassroots efforts to keep myna populations down. In 2004, an ABC article titled "Myna fightback" called for war on the bird. Mynas—and humans' efforts to monitor, trap and kill them—make for easy headlines.
People notice mynas are in abundance. Community organizations distribute traps. Myna numbers appear to decrease.
But then people get complacent and the bird bounces back. We don't know if myna numbers are actually soaring in Queensland or whether people are simply noticing them more. But my research suggests introduced birds come under more scrutiny at times of anxiety about national identity.
Earlier panics over the "immigrant bird" (the red-whiskered bulbul) made it explicit. It's too soon to say if similar dynamics are playing out for mynas. But it does raise a question.
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