Common myna birds become regular commuters on Sydney's North Shore Line

You may have heard of snakes on a plane, but what about birds on a train?

A pair of common myna birds have become regulars on Sydney's inner-city North Shore Line, perching themselves on the back of the seats during quieter hours.

The lively duo went viral after 702 ABC Sydney Drive producer Jackie Dent posted a recording of their morning on social media.

Ms Dent said upon boarding a train at Roseville Station in Sydney's upper north shore on a Sunday morning, she spotted the two birds on the upper level.

"I've never seen it, and the older lady on the train said, 'I've never seen this in all my life.'''

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When she reached Chatswood on the lower north shore, Ms Dent had an interesting conversation with a guard:

"I say, 'Hey, look, there are these two birds trapped on the train,'" she said.

"And she [the guard] says, 'They're not trapped. They're regulars. They just commute.'"

"And so I say, 'Well, what do you mean they're regulars?'"

"And she said, 'Well, these birds go between Lindfield and Artarmon every day, and then they come back.'''

That is about a seven to 10-minute trip.

"Apparently they [the train staff] think that the birds know when to get off the trains because of the announcements; maybe there's something in the lights," Ms Dent said.

Common mynas not alone

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The video has now amassed more than 4.6 million views, with many sharing their own interesting bird stories in the comments.

"Quite a few people are saying that this is a thing that they see, including a guy who worked at the Newcastle Interchange who has said that he saw birds get on," Ms Dent said.

"Apparently the birds jump on the train there, they eat the food, and they jump off."

She said other users asked whether the Sydney common myna pair had tapped on and off using their transport cards, describing the ordeal as a 'myna situation'.

Ms Dent has also spotted a pigeon getting on and off a train in Sydney, leaving some unsightly evidence of its behind.

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The guard told her there was another set of birds known to travel via train between North Sydney and Milsons Point, as well as a bird called Archie who was a regular in North Sydney before he died.

'Street kids' of the bird world

Sean Dooley from BirdLife Australia, who originally thought the video was made with artificial intelligence, said birdwatchers "tend to love to hate" the common myna.

"But you have to admire their intelligence," he said.

"That's why they're so common, is because they've worked out how to live alongside humans, both in Asia and now where they've been introduced around the world.

"They're pretty much tied to human habitation, be it the sort of rubbish we throw out or the agriculture we have, and they really know how to work the system."

Mr Dooley said he had a "grudging admiration" for the bird.

"They do turf out parrots, like native parrots, and they will even kill the chicks of the parrots to take over that nesting hollow.

"But it's because it's right in front of us that we see it and we begin to dislike those birds, but this sort of behaviour happens a lot throughout nature."