Vision and vocal communication guide three-dimensional spatial coordination of zebra finches during wind-tunnel flights

[PhysOrg]

Many bird species fly together with conspecifics in flocks to safely cover flight distances. To avoid collisions with each other and head in the same direction, flock members have to communicate and coordinate their flight positions. Researchers led by Susanne Hoffmann from Manfred Gahr's department at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence investigated how this communication takes place in zebra finches. In their study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution, they found that zebra finches use both vision and calls to coordinate their flight positions and avoid collisions.

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