Once again I've been too busy with that Lakes Basin book to post my blog this week. So here's a brief blog about a murmuration of birds that we came across on the way to Gray Lodge last week. Murmurations are very large groups of birds that fly in tight synchronization with each other, often in response to a predator. As the birds fly together, they contract, expand, twist, twirl, bend, balloon, and dive together, creating incredible abstract shapes in the sky! They are absolutely astonishing and wild to watch!
Traditionally, the word "murmuration" only referred to the acrobatics of huge groups of European Starlings, but now it is known that true blackbirds can fly in "murmuration" style as well. We first noticed the murmuration as I was driving along a two-lane road through agricultural fields on the way to Gray Lodge.
We couldn't tell what kind of birds they were, as they were silhouetted and moving fast in the air! I wondered how they flew together in synchronization, without crashing into each other. The following information about how birds navigate as a group is from https://www.audubon.org/magazine/march-april-2009/how-flock-birds-can-fly-and-move-together. It's fascinating!
"Each bird in a flock observes and responds to the movement of no more than seven neighboring birds. Mainly birds to its sides and to its front! This response by one bird creates a chain reaction that ripples quickly through the rest of the flock. Members of a flock do not stay an exact distance away from each other, like dots on a grid. This space fluctuates, with the priority being to maintain the space ahead of each individual, not so much the space to the sides or above and below. This "ripple effect" explains some of the flight behavior in flocks, but doesn't explain everything. Researchers believe that other factors affect the behavior of flocks, such as sound or even rushing air from a close neighbor. There is still a lot to learn and discover!"
Luckily they all landed in some bare-limbed trees along the road! The sound of their raucous calling was overwhelming and astounding! I quickly parked and got out of the car to watch them.
I made a movie of them landing and resettling in the tree tops, before they took off "en masse" again! Such a wonderful sight! We saw the actual murmuration while I was driving, so I wasn't able to film it. However, there are lots and lots of videos of murmurations on YouTube.com, try this link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0sE10zUYyY.
Red-winged Blackbirds - Aegelaius phoeniceus
As I zoomed in with my camera, I was able to identify them as mostly male and some female, Red-winged Blackbirds! Red-winged Blackbirds live across the US year-round. Additionally, some travel north to Canada to breed.
I wondered why they were all flying together in such a huge group. From what I've read about this behavior so far, it sounds like they mainly fly together to avoid predation and to share information about food sources. Interestingly, their genus name, Agelaius, derives from the Greek word meaning “belonging to a flock.”
Red-winged Blackbirds and ONE Yellow-headed Blackbird
Aegelaius phoeniceus - Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus
Apparently these large groups of Red-winged Blackbirds may also include Grackles, Rusty Blackbirds, and Starlings. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to stay long enough to really study them. Later, when I was looking closely at my photographs I noticed ONE YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD!!! WOW!
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Yellow-headed Blackbird - Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus
I think the one Yellow-headed Blackbird among the thousands of Red-Winged Blackbirds was quite unusual! Yellow-headed Blackbirds, normally overwinter in the southern U.S. and down into Mexico. In the spring, they migrate to the Prairie wetlands of the U.S. and Canada to breed, as well as to the wetlands along the eastern side of the Sierras. We've seen them in Sierra Valley in the spring, where they nest every year! We've never seen them in California's Central Valley. The one we saw, somehow got off-course in its migration north!
European Starlings (non-breeding) - Sturnus vulgaris
I didn't see any European Starlings in the group of Red-winged Blackbirds, but we did see some at Gray Lodge. These birds are invasive, non-native species that are detrimental to native songbirds, as they out-compete cavity-nesting birds for nest sights.
What's blooming?
What's happening on the River?
What's happening in the Lakes Basin"
Check back next week for the answers to these questions and more.
Your questions and comments are always appreciated. Please email me at northyubanaturalist@gmail.com. Thank you!
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