Golden-breasted Starling / Lamprotornis regius

This photo was taken at the Calgary Zoo on 6 October 2015. The west entrance to the Zoo will be closed from 13 October till April 2016, so I did want to get in another visit before then. I don't like the drive home on Deerfoot Trail from the north entrance, so tend not to go to the Zoo all winter. "Calgary's infamous freeway has taken the dubious top spot when it comes to this city's most dangerous place to drive." From the Calgary Sun.

This beautiful tropical bird, a Golden-breasted Starling, took my breath away! It has such vibrant colours and sheen, and an extremely long, narrow tail (which obviously isn't seen in this close shot).

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden-breasted_starling

Later: I just discovered a Calgary Sun newspaper article from 23 June 2015, about a family that discovered this bird (or a different individual - I seem to remember seeing two of these birds when I was at the Zoo a few days ago) that had escaped from the Zoo. Actually, this story reminded me that when I was in a small store a couple of days ago, buying a new pedometer, a Magpie flew in through the open door and perched on the counter by the till : ) The sales woman was surprised when I told her about her unexpected visitor!

www.calgarysun.com/2015/06/23/inglewood-family-helps-calg...