Starling flocks shift shape in the skies over Israel

The birds that come in from Russia and East Europe every winter, swooped, pivoted and soared, taking the shape of clouds and giant creatures in the skies.

A murmuration of starlings fly above a garbage dump near Beersheba (photo credit: AMIR COHEN/REUTERS)
A murmuration of starlings fly above a garbage dump near Beersheba
(photo credit: AMIR COHEN/REUTERS)
Masses of migrating starlings formed shape-shifting aerial sculptures over southern Israel.
Starlings perch on a branch near Beersheba. (Amir Cohen/Reuters)
Starlings perch on a branch near Beersheba. (Amir Cohen/Reuters)

The birds that come in from Russia and Eastern Europe every winter, swooped, pivoted and soared, taking the shape of clouds and giant creatures in the skies.

A murmuration of starlings fly above fields near Beersheba. (Amir Cohen/Reuters)
A murmuration of starlings fly above fields near Beersheba. (Amir Cohen/Reuters)
The starling "murmurations" maneuver in this unique way to scare off predators or even buffet them away by generating waves of air, ornithologists say.
Starlings are silhouetted as they fly during sunset near Beersheba. (Amir Cohen/Reuters)
Starlings are silhouetted as they fly during sunset near Beersheba. (Amir Cohen/Reuters)