So during last month's Snow Goose gathering at Cayuga Lake State Park, I took a number of videos, and this one in particular showing the explosive takeoffs, repeated in slow motion, I found particularly interesting:
https://youtu.be/3hRIJEPQ7qM When the geese on the far side first take off, you'll notice that the geese on water all turn around almost in unison to face away from the takeoff and orient themselves more or less in the direction of flight. They are also adhering to a strict protocol of not taking off early before their turn (there is some flapping by one closer bird, but it does not take off), as they wait patiently for their immediate neighbors to take off before they do so themselves. After the initial re-orientation, some geese do move around a bit, perhaps to make some more space for a safer takeoff, or perhaps just a little impatient and getting a better look at the oncoming wave of takeoffs? In all these mass tight-flying birds (snow geese, starlings, various shorebirds), it always seems incredible how they are able to stay so tight without bumping into each other. This seems only possible with what we might characterize as protocols or rules. This video shows a glimpse of something like this happening for takeoffs; no doubt some more complex protocol is happening mid-flight that's hard for us to discern watching from the ground. By the way, it has always been hard to capture the initiation of these takeoffs, because they usually happen seemingly without warning. In this instance, however, I'd noticed the approaching fishing boat and, anticipating the flush, pointed my camera in that direction and hit record. Suan -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
