Question

Have you ever been gazing at a sunset and suddenly seen what seemed like thousands of black birds swooping and swirling in waves across the sky? If so, you've observed a starling murmuration. Starling murmurations are astounding to watch—thousands of birds, sometimes even hundreds of thousands, moving together somehow in the same elaborate pattern. Starling murmurations are absolutely breathtaking.

2

Murmurations are myriads of local starlings that assemble at dusk and begin flying in a united formation. As they fly, more birds engage in the moves of the dance, diving and turning with thousands of their peers. Scientists think this is a way for starlings to avoid predators like the peregrine falcon. As the old saying goes, there is safety in numbers. There's another advantage as well: Flying in groups protects starlings from the cold winter temperatures. Many starling bodies can work together to keep one another warm.​

3

How do so many birds move in such unison? Are they all communicating with one another? Is there a predetermined pattern in which they move? Scientists have actually found that the group is not communicating as a whole, and there is no pattern. In fact, starlings react only to the seven birds closest to them. Imagine one bird starts darting to the left. Then, the seven birds closest to that bird move. Then, the seven birds closest to each of those seven birds move. Eventually, the entire group will be moving. The one small movement of a starling can be reflected in the whole flock within seconds.

4

Reading about how these murmurations work is fascinating, but perhaps the most enthralling thing you can do is watch a murmuration as it dips and dives and swirls. They are truly one of the wonders of nature.​

Question 5 of 8
Read "Startling Starlings." Then select the correct answer.

What is the main, or central, idea of the text?


Murmurations allow starlings to avoid their predators.​

A murmuration is a group of starlings flying together.​

During murmurations, starlings react to the birds closest to them.​

In a murmuration, starlings dip, dive, and swirl.

Answer 1

During murmurations, starlings react to the birds closest to them.

The passage explains that starlings coordinate their huge, swirling groups not by whole-group communication or a preset pattern, but by each bird responding to its nearest neighbors (about seven), which lets a small movement spread through the flock.