SCIENTISTS believe they have solved the mystery of why thousands of starlings gather in gigantic “cloud formations” at places such as Aberystwyth Pier.

The amazing acrobatic displays of the starlings have enthralled visitors to Aberystwyth for years. It had been believed that the murmurations were a way for starlings to stay warm or socialise, but now scientists believe the phenomenon, one of the greatest free natural shows on earth, is actually a form of self-defence to deter birds of prey.

Prof Anne Goodenough, an applied ecologist at the University of Gloucestershire who led the research, found that certain types of predator sparked the murmurations, such as sparrowhawks and peregrine falcons.

She told the journal Public Library of Science One, that when birds of prey were present around a flock of starlings they tended to land all at once in a dramatic downwards movement, rather than slowly drift away.