Michelle Smith, age 14, of Milwaukee, Wis., for her question:

WHERE DID THE MYNA BIRD COME FROM?

Myna birds are members of the starling family, a group of birds with 110 different species. You'll find the starling in just about every country of the world, for he has been transported by man from his usual homes in Europe and Asia to Africa, North America, the Hawaiian Islands and Australia.

The myna bird (also spelled. mynah by some of the experts) is a native of Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands. He is noted for his ability to mimic human speech. He's a very friendly bird and makes a wonderful pet.

One variety is called the Hill myna and is mainly black. Some are glossed with purple and green and with white patches on the wings. He varies in size from a robin to a small crow. He does very well as a house pet, requiring little more cage space than a canary. He eats birdseed and diced fruit, such as bananas and apples. He can mimic various sounds.as well as those of the human voice.

Another type of talking myna is black with 'a yellow bill and feet. He has more or less bare yellow skin on the head, including two hanging wattles on the back of the head. He's glossy and loves to talk. The lady in the family lays two or three reddish spotted, blue eggs.

Still another in the starling family that can be found in North America is the crested myna. He's about 10,inches long and came from China originally. He was introduced first into manila and then into Vancouver. From there he spread into the state of Washington. He is black with white wing patches and white tipped tail feathers. Bill, eyes and feet are bright yellow.

In listing the myna population of the world, we can't forget the common myna who is native to India but is now the most abundant bird on Oahu, Hawaii. He's a beauty about 10 inches long, brown on the upper body and pinkish below with a black head, short crest and tail. He has white wings and belly, his bill and feet are yellow and his eyes red. He's also found on other Pacific and Indian Ocean islands and in Australia.

Here are a few more of the popular myna birds: the black necked myna from China and southern Burma; the pied myna from India and Siam (he's black and white and makes domed nests of sticks, leaves and rags on branches of trees); the bank myna of northern India who is gray with a glassy black head and wings and tail trimmed with deep buff.