Do starlings follow the leader?

[Al-khiyal]

Do starlings follow the leader?

January 31, 2008 -- Gatherings of roosting starlings - containing up to seven million birds - have become one of the most popular wildlife spectacles in Britain. On winter evenings, just before dusk, large groups of watchers regularly gather to enjoy this free aerial display. But just how the birds manage to create such complex patterns without bumping into each other has long been a puzzle for scientists and birders alike.

Now, thanks to new research by Starlings in Flight, a pan-European group of physicists, biologists and economists, we know exactly how they do it. Each individual starling focuses its attention on seven of its neighbours; and as the flock turns and wheels around the sky, it responds to the movements of these particular individuals. So no matter how far these birds are driven apart, they will gradually move back towards each other. This contradicts the widely held belief that each starling simply watches out for the movements of the bird immediately in front.

The scientists discovered this by studying the starlings swarming over Rome's main railway station, then creating complex 3D computer models to analyse the behaviour of each individual bird in the flock. This new research adds to the growing body of evidence that, far from being bird-brained, our avian cousins are actually much cleverer than we think.

For example, the New Caledonian crow can not only use tools, but can also make them to serve a particular purpose - a skill matched only by human beings and chimpanzees.

If you want to see starling roosts for yourself, those on the Somerset Levels and at Brighton Pier should still be active until the end of February, and probably well into March. Fine, cold evenings are best, as these bring larger numbers of birds and even more spectacular displays.

[Bent_Bladi]

MASHAALLAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've never seen anything like that... ... wowowowowow... that's so COOOOOL!

Seriously, this is a major sub7anAllah moment.... wow

I hope to see it live one day

[amalgamate]

Mashallah, They're much like a school of fish in the sea, but namely these are a 'school of birds' in the sky.

[Bent_Bladi]

yeah! exactly

[gn4dz]

WOWWW!!! splendid!!!!!!!

[liberte]

Beautiful. Thanks so much for sharing.

[Al-khiyal]