Breathe

When do starlings murmer and when do they not murmer? A few years ago we were treated to a mesmerising show above the Otmoor wetlands, north of Oxford; a couple of weeks ago we watched them arriving at the same roosting grounds and falling almost immediately into the reeds. Today we walked into a similar marshland nature reserve here. Plenty of birds flew in to go to ground, but with only the most peremptory show of circling the site and making a couple of passes before diving into place

The presence of a sparrow hawk may have concentrated avian minds, but I have also read that part of the point of a murmuration is that it confuses and disorients predators. Perhaps the length and complexity of the display advances as the days get shorter. Anyway, we enjoyed the gathering of flocks from all directions - seeming to materialise out of nothing in a section of sky we had just been looking at - and the gentle late afternoon colours as the sun fell behind the Preselis

The low-lying land on the inside of a bend in the swollen river is sodden and muddy - accessible only using walkways in many parts. There are numerous ponds - still and reflective during a temporary lull in the wind. Our timing is obviously wrong for water birds; we saw very few. MrsM caught sight of a kingfisher crossing the river and we watched a family of foxes on the other side. Also the first jay of the trip - a contrast to two years ago, when we were 20km further west at the same time and saw them every day

These highlights aside, all was quiet, and all but the river was still. We did not mind, but soaked in the calm. The land was peaceful and contemplative, and so were we