A dance of life and death

In spring and autumn, the phonemenon called "Sort Sol" („Black Sun“) provides for a breathtaking spectacle of nature, as up to 400,000 starlings gather in the marsh near Tønder to feed their fill. Short after, they will have to face a journey of up to 2,000 km, as they set off for their winter quarters or return to their breeding grounds in February. The flocks move like a black cloud in the sky, suddenly drifting apart and reforming, as if in a rehearsed dance. The reason for this behaviour is dramatic: birds of prey like to feed on starlings. When such a hunter nears, the starlings surround and harass him until he gives up. The bird ends up no longer being able to flap its wings and literally falls "from the sky".