Starling murmuration by Léa Percot

A porcelain murmuration

leapercot — 2024-09-25 22:33:14 UTC

Exposition of murmuration photos

leapercot — 2024-09-25 22:34:14 UTC

Murmuration on video

leapercot — 2024-09-25 22:38:18 UTC

Work of Alain Delorme

leapercot — 2024-10-28 10:39:11 UTC

Murmuration in art

leapercot — 2024-10-28 10:39:41 UTC

Still water by Sue Side

https://www.sueside.com/murmurations

What are murmurations ?

leapercot — 2024-10-28 11:04:50 UTC

Current Biology Vol 22 N°4

Where to watch murmuration ?

leapercot — 2024-10-28 11:16:17 UTC

The mesmerizing act is typically

seen at dusk throughout Europe,

between November and February.

Even though starling numbers have been

falling across northern Europe since 40 years

Why do murmurations occur ?

leapercot — 2024-10-28 11:17:36 UTC

There is no real proofs in that matter. Murmurations likely help them avoid predators. They react faster in big groups, and waves in their movements can confuse predators and make attacks less successful.

Study on the method of forming murmurations

leapercot — 2024-10-28 15:00:15 UTC

This article presents a study on the behavior of starling groups (or flocks). The birds manage to remain coherent and organized despite their environments. The researchers discovered that each bird responds to the movements of its seven closest neighbors. This number is not chosen at random: it optimizes group cohesion while reducing individual effort. This means that starlings are able to manage uncertainty and external disturbances more effectively by operating in this way.

Study on murmuration patterns

leapercot — 2024-11-30 17:20:43 UTC

This study explores how starling flocks use coordinated patterns to escape predators, like creating waves, splitting into groups, or changing their shape. Researchers used videos of flocks being chased by a robot predator and computer simulations to study these behaviors. Each bird's movement is based on reacting to its neighbors and the predator, creating synchronized group dynamics that protect the flock. The study highlights the importance of individual decisions and information speed.

Key Features of Murmuration

leapercot — 2024-12-23 18:07:17 UTC

Movements of individual birds are linked across vast distances within the flock. This allows the flock to respond cohesively as if it were a single organism.

Unlike earlier beliefs, starlings do not rely on the entire flock but interact only with their nearest neighbors, typically seven birds. These local interactions are sufficient to drive the global patterns of movement observed in murmurations.

The Dynamics of Starling Murmurations

leapercot — 2024-12-23 18:27:11 UTC

Starling murmurations rely on rapid information transfer, enabling flocks to execute synchronized turns crucial for evading predators. This information spreads at 20–40 m/s through local interactions, where each bird adjusts based on its nearest neighbors.

Research shows that behavioral inertia, or resistance to abrupt changes, stabilizes this process, maintaining cohesion during turns.

Using 3D tracking, scientists observed that directional changes originate locally and spread linearly through the flock, challenging traditional diffusive models.

How do murmurations form ?

leapercot — 2024-12-23 18:32:04 UTC

Application of murmuration research

leapercot — 2024-12-23 19:25:18 UTC

Starling Murmuration Optimizer (SMO), a bio-inspired algorithm based

leapercot — 2024-12-23 19:33:08 UTC

The Starling Murmuration Optimizer (SMO) is a computational algorithm inspired by the flight patterns of starling birds. Researchers have developed SMO to solve complex optimization problems, it demonstrates superior performance compared to other algorithms.

Binary Starling Murmuration Optimizer

leapercot — 2024-12-23 21:13:48 UTC

In the study researchers introduced a binary version of SMO (BSMO) made for feature selection tasks. This feature selection is key in medical data to remove irrelevant and redundant information. The performance of BSMO was evaluated on medical databases from diseases such as diabetes, heart conditions, hepatitis, and coronavirus.