Starlings are bold, adaptable omnivores, which is a big reason they have spread so successfully — sometimes too successfully, as they can dominate garden feeders. Their diet shifts with the seasons.
What starlings eat
Starlings are omnivores with a broad diet. In spring and summer they eat mainly insects, grubs, worms and other invertebrates, which they probe for in lawns and soil. In autumn and winter they switch to more fruit, berries, seeds and grains, and they readily take human scraps and food from feeders.
Starlings at the bird feeder
Starlings often arrive in noisy groups and can quickly empty a feeder, muscling out smaller birds. They are especially fond of suet, kitchen scraps and soft foods. In North America the European starling is a non-native species, and many people look for ways to keep them from taking over their feeders.
How to deter starlings (if you want to)
If starlings are dominating your feeders, you can gently steer them elsewhere: use feeders with short perches or cages suited to small songbirds, offer foods starlings dislike such as safflower seed and nyjer, switch to upside-down suet feeders they find awkward, and skip the cheap mixed seed and scraps they love. This favours smaller birds without harming the starlings.