"Don't we all look up at the same stars?"
-A.D. Posey
India is an important wintering ground for a large number of migrant species. For some species such as the Rosy Starling, the Indian Subcontinent holds almost the entire global population in winter. (Feare & Craig 1998)
Rosy starlings get their name from their pinkish colouration. They are gregarious birds and move together in large flocks. The entire flock ascends, descends and changes directions and patterns in the air as a single unit that appears to be a shape shifting cloud. If one has ever witnessed this sight it can be only be described as an aerial ballet. Such formations are referred to as “murmurations” probably derived from the murmur sound of the flock.
A flock of about 250-500 birds is passing through our city Pune possibly on their route back to their breeding grounds in the open Steppes of Eastern Europe.
Rosy Starling
Sony A77ii
Tamron 150-600
f/6.3, 1/800s, ISO400, 500mm
Hadapsar Industrial Estate, Pune (India)
Feb. 2018