Books are usually filled with an abundance of words, but Murmur holds a wealth of images featuring Starling murmurations from Leighton Moss, Blackpool North Pier and Carnforth in Lancashire. The words that do appear in the introduction atmospherically set the scene, with the first few images featuring a small number of birds gathering on rooftops. Then you turn a page and are within the flock of thousands of Starlings. 

Every page is adorned by a photo of Starling murmurations and captures a different moment of this spectacle. I wondered how many birds were in each photo, too many to count. In some pictures, the landscape takes the lead as murmurations fly against the blue, yellow and orange sky of the RSPB nature reserve Leighton Moss. 

The skill of the photographer is evident throughout the book. The black and white images make you focus intently on the Starlings, their shapes so precisely captured, while on other pages flocks appear in motion like they could take flight from the book into the room with you. The way the photographs are ordered also takes the viewer on an immersive journey of anticipation, to awe and then calm. The last image is of a single Starling. 

In the dusk of the images, the time of day the Starlings gather to murmurate, you could almost feel the message within the photos, set out by the introduction. It is the warning that Starlings are in trouble, featuring on the UK’s Red List of Birds of Conservation Concern. It reminds us that though numbers may seem extraordinary in these photos, we shouldn’t take their presence for granted. 

Ending with an afterword by the photographer, Darren, the book captures the emotional relationship humans have with birds. Here, the photographer describes how sharing these images with his mum was a vital last connection for her with the joy of nature. 

This book with its compilation of photographs is absorbing to look through. It would appeal to those with a love of photography or nature in general, and by the end, you’ll certainly have a love for Starlings and an overwhelming desire to see a murmuration for yourself.

Reviewed by

Alice Johnson

Social Media Manager