I had the thought that perhaps there's some sort of voting in flocks of migrating birds. I had this idea while listening to a flock of starlings make a tremendous amount of noise. It seems like a waste of precious calories to chirp and squawk so much, so surely there's some function to all the vocalizations. Listening closely, I found they were making only a few different varieties of calls. Perhaps they're saying something akin to "go left" or "go right"?
Given the extreme distances that some birds travel, it seems unlikely that each bird remembers the exact route, but maybe every bird remembers separate fragments. As a flock, they have a distributed memory of the whole migration path. They then vote on the best path by calling out constantly.
I looked a bit at the research, and it seems that they're probably using the sun/moon or magnetic fields to navigate. It's still a fun thought though.
I still wonder what's the purpose of the constant calling?
Maybe it's like twitch plays pokemon. Everyone kind of knows how to play but everyone is saying something a bit different until groups form that start to dictate the path. Everyone shouting directions might sound like noise but all it takes is a small minority to rise above the noise floor to convince everyone to follow.
> "I looked a bit at the research, and it seems that they're probably using the sun/moon or magnetic fields to navigate. It's still a fun thought though."
I don't think that contradicts your hypothesis. Whether they're using magnetic fields, landmarks, the sun or sextants and chronometers, the question still remains of where they store their map. Does each bird store the entire map flawlessly in their head, or does the correct map without errors only exist collectively?
I've had 5 dogs over 45 years. All of them Shetland Sheepdogs. As long as I can remember, they have all tended to sneeze when they get excited about going outside.
If they detect I'm about to go out, they start campaigning to go with by jumping around in front of me while I'm walking around gathering up my shoes or whatever, showing a lot of excitement. It frequently culminates in one or two sneezes.
I have started to suspect that it means something.
I've noticed my dogs doing it too but they only do it in the morning when my alarm goes off. I get up and let them out followed by breakfast for them. Every other time during the day they get let out, there is no real trigger.
somewhat related: if you've ever been playing with a dog (of the pet variety, not the wild variety hopefully) and they've sneezed, that's a social signal to show that the wrestling/fighting is playful and not malicious to prevent escalation.
"BBC Earth" "The Hunt" Season 1, Episode 1, "The Hardest Challenge" has phenomenal footage of African Wild Dog pack hunting. Available on BBC and Netflix
One question is whether the stress of decision making originally
contributed to a weakened immune system and more general respiratory
issues, not exclusively sneezing. In other words, did the process
begin as "rough consensus and a runny nose"?
I wonder if flu or cold epidemics cause strategic damage as well as regular damage to packs, by making them sneeze en mass and mistake it for group consensus.
I strongly suspect that the sneezing goes with a whole package of body language, you won't send the dogs hunting by hidding a recording of sneezes in the bush nearby
I've noticed my dog (black lab) doing similar behavior consistently in the mornings, also after she had her breakfast. She'll walk away from the kitchen and her dog bowl with her tail wagging and doing some kind of sneezing sniffing-sound, also when we come home from being out of the house she'll do it too.
I have some kind of terrier.
She rarely barks.
When any other dog would bark, she usually sneezes or snorts.
So, for example, when it is time for her walk, she will snort at me and then run to the door.
Given the extreme distances that some birds travel, it seems unlikely that each bird remembers the exact route, but maybe every bird remembers separate fragments. As a flock, they have a distributed memory of the whole migration path. They then vote on the best path by calling out constantly.
I looked a bit at the research, and it seems that they're probably using the sun/moon or magnetic fields to navigate. It's still a fun thought though.
I still wonder what's the purpose of the constant calling?