50,000 starlings
Record number of Starlings come home to roost at WWT Martin Mere Wetland Centre
WWT Martin Mere is currently the home to one of nature’s most amazing spectacles - 50,000 starlings roosting at the Centre. The birds disperse during the day but return to the Centre at approximately 4pm every day with a fantastic twenty minute spectacle, creating shapes in the sky as they prepare to roost for the evening.
It is the largest number of starlings the centre has ever seen, being at least ten years since the last large roost of 30,000 birds.
The best views of the birds display is from the reedbed walk from the Harrier Hide. At the moment they are displaying between 4.10pm and 4.30pm but as the evenings get darker it will gradually come earlier. Reserve wardens are walking everyone back to the centre after the display to the exit as the building closes at 4.30pm.
Starlings spend a lot of the year in flocks. They are smaller than blackbirds, with a short tail, pointed head, triangular wings. They look black at a distance but when seen closer they are very glossy with a sheen of purples and greens.
WWT Martin Mere Wetland Centre is open every day (except Christmas Day) from 9.30am to 4.30pm during winter months and parking is free of charge. Situated off the A59, it is signposted from the M61, M58 and M6. The Centre is also accessible via the Southport to Manchester and the Liverpool to Preston line by train from Burscough Rail Stations. Visit the web site http://www.wwt.org.uk/martinmere/ to find out what’s on all year round at Martin Mere and the other eight WWT Wetland Centres.
