In the depths of winter, you could be forgiven for thinking there is no better place to be than tucked up warm at home, with your feet up and the fire on. But at this time of year large numbers of starlings visit Britain from the continent, joining our native populations. While starlings can be seen year round, their numbers swell at this time of year with European cousins seeking out the relative warmth of our island climate. Together they create incredible murmurations - one of the most amazing displays of the natural world.

As afternoons wears on, feeding flocks gather together and then set off for their communal roosts. These roost sites can be the overnight refuge for tens, even hundreds of thousands of birds. And their arrival at the roost is one of the most staggering things you’ll see all year.

Flock after flock after flock of starlings arrives, coming in from all directions to gather together in the skies above their roost site.  As the numbers build, with some of the finest ‘murmurations’ reaching into the tens and hundreds of thousands of individuals, the flocks take on a life of their own, swirling back and forth overhead.  

No bird wants to be the first to land, as there may be predators about - these large flocks attract hunting sparrowhawks and even peregrines, eager to pick a meal. The ever growing numbers, together with the occasional hunting raptor, leads to the flocks making amazing shapes in the sky, packing close together and then expanding out, one flock merges into another, zooming back and forth in ever more complex and beautiful patterns.

And then, just as the numbers reach their peak and as the last of the light fades, the birds suddenly decide the time is right and funnel down into the reeds and trees.  One last whoosh of wings, an electric chatter, and show’s over.

To catch this incredible show wrap up warm and aim to arrive at a known starling roost – like the Wildlife Trust’s Blashford Lakes nature reserve - at least half an hour before the sun goes down. Find a good vantage point from which you can both see the roost site and the sky above: that’s where the action will take place. 

And then, after you’ve had your fill of oohs and aahs and the last bird has dropped in to go to sleep, you can go back to that warm fire and cosy home.  You may feel the cold, but we challenge you not to feel warm inside after a wondrous murmuration.