Popular sites to see starlings include Gretna Green in Dumfries and Galloway, and Brighton Pier, Sussex. Several of our reserves make great viewing spots too. These include Leighton Moss, Lancashire; Saltholme, Middlesbrough; Ham Wall, Somerset; Newport Wetlands, Newport; and Snape, Suffolk.
I remember seeing that when I was a little boy ( in sussex ) but haven't seen it a lot up here, loads of starlings in Inverness at dusk sometimes though.
I sometimes see a fair collection of them when I'm down at Bothwell Castle with the dugs just as dawn breaks in the winter, but...nothing to compare with that video!
Absolutely fantastic Mole - I'd never seen it. Cheers for the link.
No, I'd not seen that video either - great stuff, thanks Mole
I would love to see something on that scale.
I've seen a much smaller display recently while driving along the A41, Chester to Whitchurch Road but couldn't find a convenient place to stop and watch.
We were walking along the River Dee by Farndon this evening and a large flock flew over. They were doing a bit of wheeling and turning but were definitely heading somewhere else so it didn't last for long.
About 3 years ago we had we had regular displays here (S Cheshire). They are a major pest. They would appear at dawn and dusk and would shit all over the silage while the cows were being milked. Eventually deterred them with a couple of strategically placed gas guns set to go off every few minutes.
Luckily, numbers seem to have reduced over the last couple of years.
That's a great video; they were almost inside the flock, so got very dense spots.
We get them on the industrial estate at work, and it's nice to see them in the evening (at the right time of year), as they gather together at sunset and then all peel off to the ground to roost.
some mathematician has claimed they're something to do with the 7 times table, that each bird determines its position with reference to 6 around it and that somehow produces this marvellous spectacle. anyone know about this?
I witnessed the Gretna ones last spring on the way home from a canoe trip in Scotland. I pulled off the M74 at the first exit and got out and watched for ten minutes until it was too dark.
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