This species is named for Johannes Hildebrandt, a German collector who was the first European to obtain specimens. A bird of Acacia savanna, it resembles the more common Superb Starling, but has a red eye and lacks the white chest band.
It was formerly placed in the genus Spreo but moved to Lamprotornis with the other glossy starlings in Clement's 4th ed. These starlings have iridescent blue or green upper parts caused by hollow melanin granules arranged in a single layer near the feather barbule’s surface. This unique arrangement causes interference in reflected light waves producing the iridescent colors. It is shared by all members of the genus Lamprotornis and is the primary reason they were transferred out of Spreo.
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