rocking chair, that’s a great story! Can you imagine what that roof looked like?
screech-owl, you know, I’ve thought about why on earth those species of starlings were listed and I’m pretty buffaloed. One of them is listed in Mongolia, and so may be also in Russia, which might explain it (Russia, Japan, Canada, Mexico, and the US are all co-signers). But for this to make sense, then Ashy (I think it was them) would have to be fairly regular accidentals. And the other species occurs in Africa. So a big ?? from me. (Maybe it’s part of a big Sturnidae conspiracy.)
I’ve heard about that Shakespearean bird lover too. Damn their eyes! I also heard that it took 4 or 5 attempts with starlings before they became established. Damn their persistence!
Ruffian, what sharp eyes you have! Yeah, my office is adorned with corvid stuff. As a member of the American Society of Crows and Ravens, it is my sworn duty to celibrate all things corvid. I simply love these birds. On my webpage is a picture of a juvenile crow I took care of for a few days before introducing him back to his family. He had fallen out of the nest tree before he was strong enough to fly off the ground. Too many cats around, so I took him in. I had to go down to Cape May to band some birds, so I took him with me (gotta feed these guys a lot). He stayed on the banding table until it started to rain. He scooted inside the Explorer and laid between the front seats, and that’s when I snapped his picture. I was able to send him back to his family, and now he’s part of a group that regularly yells at me. 
Now, I have to confess that I too have an unclipped bird. I don’t think my kakariki would find another to mate with if he got out, but I also have to confess that’s not the reason why I don’t clip him. It’s the ornithologist in me being entirely selfish in watching the joy of him flying about. I was surprised, though, seeing a flock of parrots zooming around my mom’s place the last time I visited Southern California. Here’s a webpage describing feral parrots in Southern California.
Finally, piaffe, I’m glad you found a solution that will work best for both you and the bird. I just also wanted to share this story of a chickadee with a bum leg that I banded a few years ago. The wonderful persistence of life!