How Murmurations of Birds Work

[StinkyPete]

Have you ever seen huge flocks of birds, flying and swirling in sync, a group peeling off, and then reuniting with the flock again.   These huge swirling masses of birds are called Murmurations, and are a true marvel and wonder to be seen.    On several occasions I've seen murmurations of budgies out in the outback, which from a distance have looked like swirling clouds of smoke, and it gladdens my heart to have seen them.   How do they do it, and is there some kind of telephathy happening between the birds, as they act like a single organism?    Today I stumbled across a sensible theory of what's going on, and it's supported by what's called "Boids Algorithm".

Each bird is flying according to three really simple rules, and combine these three and you have a murmuration.
1.  Fly towards the centre of the mass of birds
2.  Avoid crashes with other birds
3.  Try to match vectors with other birds in your immediate vicinity

See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LWmRuB-uNU&t=343s for some images, theory, information and simulations.

Isn't nature grand...... 

Tomorrow's homework is to find out the term for the huge schools of fish that also tend to turn in unison.   

[Biggles]

I've seen the murmurations of Starlings in the UK.  That dynamic still doesn't explain the apparent random changes in direction.  Maybe the guy at the centre is the Air Traffic Controller and he just enjoys watching everyone have to brake to match his movements.
I wonder if schools of fish just travel in relatively straight lines until a predator comes by when they then form a ball all trying to get away from the edge.