Burscough, Lancashire, UK Weather 30th November, 2017. Starling flocks mumurate over Martin Mere nature reserve at dawn as thousands of starlings take to the air after a cold overnight roost in the reed bed in rural Lancashire. At dawn the murmur or chatter, interaction and communication is quite noisy & intense before they fly. All then seems to go quiet before they rise together in one great whoosh and disperse to the nearby farm lands. During autumn these flocks of highly intelligent, iridescent birds are famous for their spectacular aerial displays. Credit. MediaWorldImages/AlamyLiveNews
The onset of winter triggers these mumurations as huge flocks of gregarious birds congregate to find communal roosts. The murmur or chatter, the interaction and communication between birds as they fly, is quite intense. These displays are the largest seen in the last for 12 years and are attracting large numbers of birdwatchers to the area. Grouping together offers safety in numbers – predators such as peregrine falcons find it hard to target one bird in the middle of a hypnotising flock of thousands.
Size: 3600px × 2400px
Location: Burscough, United Kingdom
Photo credit: © MediaWorldImages / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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