Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Jim Stingl - "Wonderment takes flight with starlings"
"The best show in town isn't at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts.
"It's above it.
"A huge flock of what I've learned are starlings swoops high over the Milwaukee River and downtown buildings at dusk.
"The cloud of birds is roundish but constantly changing shapes. Sometimes it stretches thin and then quickly compacts again. From a distance, it looks like the swarm of bees that would chase people in the cartoons."
http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/65103702.html
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6 comments:
I've noticed this same peculiarity on 16th Street near the Oakes Landfill. They swarm in clouds and move back and forth, landing in trees or on the high power lines.
I assumed that they did this to form leaders, kind of like a give and take of who to follow.
It is neat to watch.
Very interesting....
I think it's neat how they all line up on the phone wires. Some have compatibility issues but it is funny to see them perch and change positions. Also to watch them fly and SWARM and they never hit another bird....amazing!
PS...I also just saw recently an article as to how they are becoming 'pesty' and there are thoughts of 'controlling' them.
I like it when there are a zillion black birds in a group.
We have chimney swifts in Racine in the summer. They fly down into larger brick chimneys at dusk to spend the night. They swirl around above until one, then the other, dives down. I never knew about this until a bird watching friend pointed it out to me a few years back.
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