Just arrived back
from viewing a murmuration of starlings on Middleton Moor, Derbyshire. It was
cold, it became wet, but it was well worth it. A murmuration is always a
spectacular sight, one of nature's great creative moments. The build up of
small groups of twenty or thirty starlings flying in from various directions
just adds to the anticipation of what is to come. At one point the ever-growing
flock flew straight over our heads with a "whoosh!" As the flock
grows larger and larger, possibly over sixty thousand birds, the kaleidoscopic shapes they form
are amazing: I saw giant fish, dragons, mushroom clouds and writhing snakes.
The birds cease to be individuals but morph into a 'solid' mass that heaves and
flexes in all directions, then suddenly spirals down into the willows and reed
beds to spend the night in relative safety from predators. This is a wonderful
sight which is attracting many people which is not surprising.
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