One in-flight pigeon, coordinated inside a squadron, receives information from three to four other pigeons on average. Birds flying in the midst of the flock and birds moving close to the average speed of the rest of the flock and close to the flock have particularly significant influence over the rest of the flock, according to a study by researchers led by Duxin Shen, from Nanjing University in China. The current issue of the magazine «Kaos» specialized.
During the study, the researchers monitored flight movements within a swarm of pigeons, using data mining methods. So far, the researchers believed that coordinated behavior in flight relies on three basic rules, avoiding collisions with other members within the squadron, namely adjusting the speed and direction of movement with the rest of the squadron, and trying to stay near the center of the squadron.
But Chen and his colleagues believe coordinated flying is more complicated than just following these instructions. In their study, the researchers used high-quality GPS data for a number of pigeons inside a swarm, collected for a previous study. Provides researchers with data on the location of 10 pools in three swarms.
During this study, the researchers, under the guidance of Chen, used data mining algorithms to find out which pigeons affect the flight behavior of another pigeon and at what strength.
They found that the influence of a pigeon on the behavior of another pigeon is greater the less the direction of flight and speed than the rate of variation within the squadron. They found that the pigeon affects three to four adjacent pigeons, as well as many others.
The closer the pigeon is to the center of the squadron, the more impact it has on the rest of the squadron, noting that the pigeons with a high impact on the squadron do not remain the same, but can hand this role to another bath during the development of the squadron flight.