Starling Spectacular

[johnwilson]

#6725

On my evening visit yesterday could see no sign of Starlings from Lillians Hide going into roost and the staff told me that they had not been seen for a few days. However June Chappell e-mailed me to say that at 4.15 that evening a large group was seen heading to Leighton over Yealand Storrs. I thought I would go again tonight. What a spectacle! Tens of thousands flew round then landed on the trees at the edge of the road then very large numbers dropped onto the field between the road and the Moss only ca 15 m from me singing all the time and apparently feeding. They took off if a large vehicle passed and they swept round in a wonderfully dense group over the road before returning to the fields and trees. They then eventually moved into the reeds and willows between the edge of the Moss and the Island Mere, flattening the reeds so you could still see them. What a wonderful sight. There must have been hundreds of thousands in total, the best starling roost spectacle I have seen in 70 years of visiting the Moss! They kindly left me a few gifts on my car! They would not be visible from Lilians or the Sky Tower.Thanks so much June.
John Wilson

[eddybayton]

#6728

Superb John. At dawn the last few mornings there has been a pass-by of starlings heading South and East over Lancaster. They fly perhaps 10 deep but hundreds and hundreds wide in one passage perhaps 1km wide. Am I right in assuming these birds are part of the LM Roost as they are coming on a beeline from there?

[johnwilson]

#6730

Sounds very much like that they are Leighton birds. All the ones last night came in from the east but they may have had a gathering location before coming in.

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