I have some ideas that draw parallels to bird murmuration. Am I wrong? During murmuration (the collective, synchronized flight of a flock), starlings typically maintain a steady speed of 40–45 km/h, although individual birds or small groups can accelerate to 60–80 km/h if necessary (and, in rare instances, up to 90 km/h during migratory flights). Key characteristics of bird speeds during murmuration include:
- The illusion of speed variation: When observing the starlings' "dance" from the ground, it appears as though parts of the flock are suddenly slowing down (clustering) or speeding up. However, computer modeling by physicists has proven this to be an optical illusion caused by the projection of the 3D flock onto our 2D field of vision. In reality, the birds attempt to fly at a constant, uniform speed.
- The "rule of seven neighbors": Each bird does not monitor the entire flock; instead, a starling orients itself and adjusts its speed and direction based on its six or seven nearest neighbors.
- When a predator (such as a peregrine falcon) attacks the flock, the birds closest to it abruptly change their trajectory. This impulse ripples through the flock at a speed of 20 to 40 meters per second (72–144 km/h). In other words, information propagates through the flock significantly faster than the birds themselves are flying.
