How Starlings Avoid Crashing When They Flock Together: Uncovering the Mystery of Their Flight (VIDEO)

Flocks of starlings can make for an amazing sight as they move in complicated patterns, swirling in a bubble-like formation through the skies. Now, scientists have found out how these birds manage these shifting patterns; it all has to do with light and dark.

The researchers actually found that flocking starlings aim to maintain an optimum density at which they can gather data on their surroundings. This occurs when they can see light through the flock at many angles, a state known as marginal opacity. This subsequent pattern of light and dark that's formed is what provides vital information to individual flock members.

"An individual starling within a flock can see in front of them areas of light and dark created by other birds, forming a dynamic and changing silhouette," said Daniel Pearce, the lead researcher, in a news release. "Our research ascertained that the silhouettes we external observers witness were a result of large flocks self-organizing to achieve a marginally opaque state at which a bird can still see some of the light sky through gaps in the flock and gather information from other birds."

Taking this information, the scientists created a computer model in which individual birds with simulated intelligence were attracted to the areas in the flock that could provide the most information on the rest of the flock. This, in particular, caused the swarm formation that's seen in the wild.

"When we observe a flock of starling we are actually seeing a 2D projection of a dynamic, changing 3D environment," said Pearce. "By developing this model we have been able to simulate this environment and see that when each bird is attracted to the areas in the flock that can provide the most information the result is a cohesive swarm that resembles a large flock of starlings in the wild."

The findings are published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Want to learn more? Check out the video below, courtesy of YouTube.