Rock sandpiper flock over the mudflats of Kachemak Bay, Alaska (photo by Lisa Hupp/USFWS via Wikimedia)

21 August 2026

When migrating shorebirds evade a falcon they form very tight flocks that twist and turn in the air to make the flock look like a solid blob. If they have white bellies and dark backs, the flock changes color as they turn.

When you see these murmurations, look for the falcon who’s chasing them. He’s visible for a split second at approximately 0:46.

Thanks to a falcon, we witnessed a fantastic murmuration of thousands of dunlins and sanderlings at Griffiths-Priday State Park north of Ocean Shores, WA.