Durham Bird Club at 50
The county avifauna, The Birds of Durham (Bowey and Newsome, 2012) records that “A public meeting in late 1974 at Sunderland Museum and Art Gallery to discuss bird watching and recording was well-attended. This was followed on 8 January 1975 by another meeting and enrolment for membership of the Durham Bird Club began shortly afterwards.”
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We shall be organising various projects and events during the year to commemorate this special anniversary. These include a "Bird of the Week" feature, appearing below.
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Bird of the Week - Week 45
Starling – Murmurs of Autumn
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​​(Photo by Mark Harper)​​​
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Few sights in nature are as mesmerising as a murmuration of Starlings — twisting, shifting flocks that seem to move as one living cloud against the evening sky. Here in County Durham, numbers are starting to build again as northern migrants join our resident birds to roost in reedbeds, woodlands and wetlands.
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At first glance, Starlings can seem ordinary, familiar garden birds with a noisy, chattering energy. But catch one in the right light, and its plumage is a marvel of iridescent greens and purples, each feather tipped with a fine pale spot.
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Although murmurations can form throughout late autumn, in recent years all of the County’s peak counts have come in December, especially from our lowland carrs, where birds can gather in their thousands before dropping suddenly into reedbeds to roost. The collective motion of the flock, rippling and reforming in the fading light, is one of the true seasonal highlights of winter birding.
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Beyond the spectacle, the Starling remains a fascinating and adaptable bird, a skilled mimic, a cooperative feeder, and a reminder that even our most familiar species can still surprise us.
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Have you noticed flocks gathering near you yet, or seen early murmurations forming at dusk?
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More information on Starlings
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E-mail: admin@durhambirdclub.org.uk
Social media tags: #DBC #DBCat50 #DurhamBirdClub #BirdOfTheWeek
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