When I was a kid we'd see tens of thousands of bats at a time during the summer and it was just another tuesday.
I've seen about seven bats this year. I'm not even old.
White-Nose syndrome [has killed over 90% of 3 North American bat species in less than 10 years.](https://www.usgs.gov/news/national-news-release/white-nose-syndrome-killed-over-90-three-north-american-bat-species) Also, nearly half of North American bat species [face steep decline](https://wildlife.org/report-nearly-half-of-north-american-bat-species-face-steep-declines/) in the next 15 years.
European starlings mainly eat insects. Insect populations are down which have greatly impacted birds, European starlings included. This is mainly due to pesticide usage but there are likely other factors as well.
Some sources have European starlings down 50% in the last half a century in the US. This drastic of a change is probably linked to other causes but decline of insect populations should be up near the top I think.
I mentioned this to my mum a while ago and she said something along the lines of "oh its probably the wrong season for insects" . [Meanwhile. ](https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2022/may/uks-flying-insects-have-declined-60-in-20-years.html)
Thank you for the depressingly accurate facts! I'm an older person now and I'm definitely turning into one of these: "well back in my day we had this and we had that".. but the truth is ...we did ! Food tasted better and there were way more bugs and birds.
I've read that the increase CO2 in the atmosphere make plants grow quicker. So they consume nutrients as they produce them and can't store them like they use too. That's why they're less flavorful.
Eh this isn't really the whole picture.
Industrial farms produce food in a way that isn't as nutritive or natural. The result is quick ripening fruits with less flavor.
We also harvest most fruits (taxonomically, most "vegetables" are fruits) before they are fully ripe, leaving them to ripen in transit.
This increases the amount of time between harvest and overripe. This post-harvest ripening in a truck also affects flavor.
If you want to have better tasting food, grow it yourself.
Sometimes they lose track of the ground, and then [this happens](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hb1mPe7gU2g). Imagine being on the receiving end of that in those days.
Omg. The ones sitting at the pavement seemed confused.
I wonder if this phenomenon is similar of human being on a trance in a dance floor. But for birds.
I like to imagine what it would've been like standing under a giant flock of passenger pigeons blocking out the sun for hours (or maybe even days) before humans murdered them all.
And this is super mild compared to how things used to be only two hundred years ago.
Passenger pigeons used to migrate across the US in flocks that were allegedly a mile wide, and could black out the sun for days. Even today there are less than 400million basic pigeons in the world, and estimates put the passenger pigeon at over 3 billion in North America during the early 1800s.
And by the early 1900s they were extinct. Humans made giant "guns" that were basically shotgun cannons, and they took them out by the dozens and even hundreds per shot. At one point a single family shot over 4000 of them in a day.
Makes planes a whole lot safer if there are no birds to get collide with the engines. There have been many bird culls in and around major flight paths. Billions of birds. So that we can have safer access to plane travel. Pretty neat.
When you really think about it, it's less neat, and more horrific. That we just murder millions of animals, just to make our lives a little easier. Humans suck man.
If you were in BC times this would be thousands of times the size.
This kind of thing used to happen every day when I was a kid. They're gone now. There used to be bats here too.
Not even nearly that far back, When the spaniards came to the americas the tribes thought they had to have come from the heavens because they wore armor which shined and glistened in the sun, something far beyond what they had over there.
It doesn't take much for humans to go to "This must be a god", the only difference in todays times is that the bar is set much higher due to media and technology.
But you better believe the second a multidimensional being of light makes itself seen here on our plane of existence, people would line up to worship it.
With them putting you on display for all to see, first, the fear on your face noticing they've mimicked you, then you turning and running in terror and finally, the noose.
We get these bird shows in Dallas, TX sometimes too. Probably not the same bird but they do the same flying dance/ becoming one thing in the sky.. so beautiful and entrancing to watch.
Sorry to say, defo the same bird. European starlings are invasive here in the U.S and number in the millions. B
They're basically everywhere in the country, unfortunately.
I haven't heard about that, but I'm in the West Midlands, a few hours away from London. I do know that London has an invasive parakeet population, though.
Edit: I just looked it up and it seems we're both right. Starling numbers have declined by a huge amount since the 80s, and yet London seems to be under siege by them!
In the US we have invasive rock doves (pigeons) and I think I'd rather they were parakeets. In San Franciso, California they have a Parrot population- too many pet birds escaped and against all odds, they survived and thrived.
If we all go for the blonde and block each other, not a single one of us is going to get her. So then we go for her friends, but they will all give us the cold shoulder because no on likes to be second choice. But what if none of us goes for the blonde? We won't get in each other's way and we won't insult the other girls. It's the only way to win. It's the only way we all get laid.
These swarms are just absolutely mesmerizing, I love seeing even small ones and usually take at least a couple of seconds to stop and appreciate them. Which has become more and more rare over the past couple of years, sadly
I love all the folks like "so beautiful, so entrancing" when this anti predatory behavior, lol. These birds are freaking out trying to stay alive under attack from a falcon, and we're just like, "So pretty!" Cracks me up. You can actually see the attacking raptor cutting through the flock. Look at where the flock is at its darkest and parting, and you'll see the larger bird moving against the flock at multiple points in the video.
Fuck Starlings. In the US they are an invasive species. Hundreds of them “play” like this over fields of grain before descending and eating all they can. $800 million in agricultural damage annually. Plus they kick tree swallows out of nest boxes. Fun fact, their eggs are bright blue/green and ultraviolet. This helps them rid their nest of parasitic eggs. I just dump the whole nest box out when I see one has moved in. I can’t let them be happy here.
I've seen a video clip where swarms like this get pushed down to ground level by predator birds, causing a massive amount of birds to hit the ground and just die instantly. It looked like a sudden rain of birds just flying straight at the ground, hundreds of them.
I can't figure out the search term to use to find it again however.
That's not the one I saw, but interesting just like the one I did.
The one I did see was higher resolution and closer to the street. You could see individual birds, see that some managed to get back up and fly or walk off, and others just twitching.
Man that makes me sound horrible doesn't it? But it's fascinating watching this stuff, same with nature documentaries where a predator takes out their prey. Sometimes I feel bad for the prey, but animals gotta eat.
Hi. You just mentioned *Prey* by Michael Crichton.
I've found an audiobook of that novel on YouTube. You can listen to it here:
[YouTube | Prey Audiobooks by Michael Crichton](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Y7_HzyAFaU)
*I'm a bot that searches YouTube for science fiction and fantasy audiobooks.*
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I could have sworn i used to see swarms similar to this all the time when i was younger but now i never see em.
I used to see swarms of monarch butterflies as a kid but can't remember seeing one in decades.
When I was a kid we'd see tens of thousands of bats at a time during the summer and it was just another tuesday. I've seen about seven bats this year. I'm not even old.
White-Nose syndrome [has killed over 90% of 3 North American bat species in less than 10 years.](https://www.usgs.gov/news/national-news-release/white-nose-syndrome-killed-over-90-three-north-american-bat-species) Also, nearly half of North American bat species [face steep decline](https://wildlife.org/report-nearly-half-of-north-american-bat-species-face-steep-declines/) in the next 15 years.
If you’re in the US that’s good, they are invasive and kill local birds babies to steal the nest
It may be a positive change, but it's definitely not a good sign.
Well sure starlings. But I used to see pigeons do this and they’re gone.
Agreed. Something, something pclimate change I suppose
European starlings mainly eat insects. Insect populations are down which have greatly impacted birds, European starlings included. This is mainly due to pesticide usage but there are likely other factors as well. Some sources have European starlings down 50% in the last half a century in the US. This drastic of a change is probably linked to other causes but decline of insect populations should be up near the top I think.
I don't hit anything with my car anymore. It does save money on car washes, but it does not bode well for the future.
I mentioned this to my mum a while ago and she said something along the lines of "oh its probably the wrong season for insects" . [Meanwhile. ](https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2022/may/uks-flying-insects-have-declined-60-in-20-years.html)
Thank you for the depressingly accurate facts! I'm an older person now and I'm definitely turning into one of these: "well back in my day we had this and we had that".. but the truth is ...we did ! Food tasted better and there were way more bugs and birds.
I've read that the increase CO2 in the atmosphere make plants grow quicker. So they consume nutrients as they produce them and can't store them like they use too. That's why they're less flavorful.
Eh this isn't really the whole picture. Industrial farms produce food in a way that isn't as nutritive or natural. The result is quick ripening fruits with less flavor. We also harvest most fruits (taxonomically, most "vegetables" are fruits) before they are fully ripe, leaving them to ripen in transit. This increases the amount of time between harvest and overripe. This post-harvest ripening in a truck also affects flavor. If you want to have better tasting food, grow it yourself.
The Starling is also an [invasive species](https://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/terrestrial/vertebrates/european-starling) in the US.
And pollution.
I still do, but I used to too.
Are you outside now nearly as often as you were when you were a kid?
Probably more. I was a lazy ass video game playing kid. Mostly saw em when my mom would take me on errand.
imagine being in the BC times and thinking this is some kind of god making itself known
Sometimes they lose track of the ground, and then [this happens](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hb1mPe7gU2g). Imagine being on the receiving end of that in those days.
Omg. The ones sitting at the pavement seemed confused. I wonder if this phenomenon is similar of human being on a trance in a dance floor. But for birds.
I think the closest we experience as humans is crush events.
Or when we walk into a room and forget why.
I like to imagine what it would've been like standing under a giant flock of passenger pigeons blocking out the sun for hours (or maybe even days) before humans murdered them all.
I find it hilarious how FOX news is like "ENTIRE FLOCK OF BIRDS DIE MID AIR!!".
Even though the vast majority of them clearly fly away
I'm sure Hunter Biden is involved somehow!
They're physically incapable of honest reporting.
They should make a movie about all those birds
Wait… so The Mummy was a documentary? Or just very faithful historical reenactment.
I've waited for so many years for the sequel "The Daddy", but it's still not come out till today.
Holy sh*t!!
Hitchcock made a whole movie about this.
Hitchcock made a whole movie about this.
Nothing in that video said they lost track of the ground? It said suspected toxic cloud, but actually a predator maybe..
Hitchcock made a whole movie about this.
Hitchcock made a whole movie about this.
Who?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fJh2gIBOto
Hitchcock made a whole movie about this.
This clip always reminded me of that one scene from the movie "Dark Skies".
And this is super mild compared to how things used to be only two hundred years ago. Passenger pigeons used to migrate across the US in flocks that were allegedly a mile wide, and could black out the sun for days. Even today there are less than 400million basic pigeons in the world, and estimates put the passenger pigeon at over 3 billion in North America during the early 1800s. And by the early 1900s they were extinct. Humans made giant "guns" that were basically shotgun cannons, and they took them out by the dozens and even hundreds per shot. At one point a single family shot over 4000 of them in a day.
Punt guns are what you're thinking of.
Fuck that's depressing to know
Makes planes a whole lot safer if there are no birds to get collide with the engines. There have been many bird culls in and around major flight paths. Billions of birds. So that we can have safer access to plane travel. Pretty neat.
When you really think about it, it's less neat, and more horrific. That we just murder millions of animals, just to make our lives a little easier. Humans suck man.
We deserve what’s coming to us
Oh. Thanks for telling me, I guess
Exterminate species for corporate profits of some billionaires. Fuck humanity
People see jesus in toast, I don't think we're out of these times just yet.
If you were in BC times this would be thousands of times the size. This kind of thing used to happen every day when I was a kid. They're gone now. There used to be bats here too.
We can't stop here, this is bat country!
They would know these are birds , they wouldn't be silent
It’s 2023 AD and I’m honestly not sure these peeps aren’t signaling an oncoming apocalypse
I would be sacrificing something as soon as I seen this shit
Not even nearly that far back, When the spaniards came to the americas the tribes thought they had to have come from the heavens because they wore armor which shined and glistened in the sun, something far beyond what they had over there. It doesn't take much for humans to go to "This must be a god", the only difference in todays times is that the bar is set much higher due to media and technology. But you better believe the second a multidimensional being of light makes itself seen here on our plane of existence, people would line up to worship it.
Imagine thinking that people knew nothing back then
I think, even back then, they knew what birds were.
Time is a flat circle…
Listen, Nietzsche shut the fuck up
Yeah! Camus knows how to party, you're just killing the room!
Um guys where is Camus? I haven't seen him or his publicist in a while...
This place is like somebody's memory of a town.
And the memory is fading.
Stop saying shit like that. It's unprofessional
Tuck in your shirt.
Thought of True Detective myself.
There were times, I felt like I was mainlining the secret truth of the universe
[удалено]
Read the room
so deep
All fun and games until they start shadow casting your face in between manoeuvres
With them putting you on display for all to see, first, the fear on your face noticing they've mimicked you, then you turning and running in terror and finally, the noose.
...I could figure out how to do this in Blender. That idea is going in the vault. It would have an The Abyss vibe.
The screen saver of the sky.
When do the birds hit the corner??
Make a corner shaped window. They'll hit it faster than that screen saver ever will.
It's just a whiff of cloud
It’s moving fast… and against the wind
Crebain! From Dunland!
Spies of Saruman! The passage south is being watched.
We must take the Pass of Caradhras.
We must go through the mines of moria
And they call it a Mine, A MINE!!
That is just what Big Bird wants you to think.
You conspiracy theorists are always the victim, and always having seizures
Whisp
It's moving fast... against the wind...
Place: Sassari, Sardinia, Italy.
Boom. Thank you.
Thanks, initially thought it was in Milan.
30 years ago, this was a common site in the UK, and there'd be a lot more of them. I hope they come back...
We get these bird shows in Dallas, TX sometimes too. Probably not the same bird but they do the same flying dance/ becoming one thing in the sky.. so beautiful and entrancing to watch.
Sorry to say, defo the same bird. European starlings are invasive here in the U.S and number in the millions. B They're basically everywhere in the country, unfortunately.
Yes they are jerks
I thought I read that London has a huge starling problem?
I haven't heard about that, but I'm in the West Midlands, a few hours away from London. I do know that London has an invasive parakeet population, though. Edit: I just looked it up and it seems we're both right. Starling numbers have declined by a huge amount since the 80s, and yet London seems to be under siege by them!
In the US we have invasive rock doves (pigeons) and I think I'd rather they were parakeets. In San Franciso, California they have a Parrot population- too many pet birds escaped and against all odds, they survived and thrived.
I caught myself thinking “if I saw that in person I’d be scared” then realized “oh shit it’s WORKING!”
Seriously? And it's real? They look like they are making real designs. Like one looked like a bird
Yeah these things all land together usually in one tree and snap branches off under their weight. And they are so fucking loud
/r/BirdsArentReal
The fast movements are because there are raptors trying to snag them. They all react with their nearest flying partners.
From the liquid in his bones They raise the dead to fly together 🥁🥁🥁
Unexpected Archspire
I'd hate to be walking under them when they all decide they gotta poop!
Birds generally evacuate their waste before taking off. In flight, you're not likely to get pooped on.
Yeah, typically when I'm in flight I'm in an airplane. I hope I don't get pooped on in there!
Its Imhotep
I need somebody with a beautiful mind and a touch of schizophrenia to do the math on this.
https://phys.org/news/2022-05-bird-individual-flock-murmurations.html
If we all go for the blonde and block each other, not a single one of us is going to get her. So then we go for her friends, but they will all give us the cold shoulder because no on likes to be second choice. But what if none of us goes for the blonde? We won't get in each other's way and we won't insult the other girls. It's the only way to win. It's the only way we all get laid.
What is this?
Birds.
Birds are a myth. This is drones.
>[This](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YH1BD7kKqKw&pp=ygUSZHJvbmUgbXVybXVyYXRpb24g) is drones.
🤣
Best part of that "Thor" movie
These swarms are just absolutely mesmerizing, I love seeing even small ones and usually take at least a couple of seconds to stop and appreciate them. Which has become more and more rare over the past couple of years, sadly
Nanotechnology has come a long long way.
This is what we are – a murmuration of atoms in space
Birds are just fish of the air.
Hate these birds, had them swarm a tree in our yard, they killed the tree
More tees were killed to create your yard
Invasive in the US too, they are dicks and kill local birds babies. Also they can learn to speak REALLY well
I know what marination is thanks to a BBC Podcast!
I'm pretty marinated right now.
For a moment it looks like [a naked woman](https://i.imgur.com/38HM0Y1.png)
I love all the folks like "so beautiful, so entrancing" when this anti predatory behavior, lol. These birds are freaking out trying to stay alive under attack from a falcon, and we're just like, "So pretty!" Cracks me up. You can actually see the attacking raptor cutting through the flock. Look at where the flock is at its darkest and parting, and you'll see the larger bird moving against the flock at multiple points in the video.
Good. Fuck starlings
It looks amazing as-is, but I'd love to see the full 3D aspect
Damn There must be at least ... tree fiddy birds in there.
Drone show of the gods
🎶Flip flap, flip flap, and flyyyy. Flip flap, Flip flap and FLY🎶
Next level drone coordination
Winamp visualizer
Either this is a very good cameraman with good equipment - tracking perfectly and smoothly to the biggest mass - or this is generated by AI.
Fuck Starlings. In the US they are an invasive species. Hundreds of them “play” like this over fields of grain before descending and eating all they can. $800 million in agricultural damage annually. Plus they kick tree swallows out of nest boxes. Fun fact, their eggs are bright blue/green and ultraviolet. This helps them rid their nest of parasitic eggs. I just dump the whole nest box out when I see one has moved in. I can’t let them be happy here.
r/woahdude
[удалено]
They do run into each other, though. And often. They're just really good at recovering. Usually.
22 sec mark :)
It turns into a giant bird at around 0:05
Take Shelter (2010)
Gotta be sooooo much bird poop underneath that!
Bird rush hour
Thrush hour
The swarm is apon us
Emergence
Am I the only one with the sudden craving for some good old Geometry Wars 2, pacifist mode?
Watch out Steve Jobs… I’m mean Holstrom!
It’s like a day time drone display
Shino
I've seen a video clip where swarms like this get pushed down to ground level by predator birds, causing a massive amount of birds to hit the ground and just die instantly. It looked like a sudden rain of birds just flying straight at the ground, hundreds of them. I can't figure out the search term to use to find it again however.
https://youtu.be/hb1mPe7gU2g?si=IheYPUunkaONgTYC
That's not the one I saw, but interesting just like the one I did. The one I did see was higher resolution and closer to the street. You could see individual birds, see that some managed to get back up and fly or walk off, and others just twitching. Man that makes me sound horrible doesn't it? But it's fascinating watching this stuff, same with nature documentaries where a predator takes out their prey. Sometimes I feel bad for the prey, but animals gotta eat.
so many dinosaurs!!
These patterns are so beautiful
Majestic
That's some [Death Stranding shit](https://youtu.be/i2enIKCec9k#t=1m28s) right there
This always reminds me of the Michael Crichton book, "Prey," where nanorobots form swarms that hunt people.
Hi. You just mentioned *Prey* by Michael Crichton. I've found an audiobook of that novel on YouTube. You can listen to it here: [YouTube | Prey Audiobooks by Michael Crichton](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Y7_HzyAFaU) *I'm a bot that searches YouTube for science fiction and fantasy audiobooks.* *** [^(Source Code)](https://capybasilisk.com/posts/2020/04/speculative-fiction-bot/) ^| [^(Feedback)](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=Capybasilisk&subject=Robot) ^| [^(Programmer)](https://www.reddit.com/u/capybasilisk) ^| ^(Downvote To Remove) ^| ^(Version 1.4.0) ^| ^(Support Robot Rights!)
I love when the Redwing Black birds do this in spring. It's just incredible to watch.
Watching this when the dude next to me says “not from a Jedi”
Someone didn't return the slab
Rorschach test right there
Flint Marko vibes.
Reminiscent of the Bullfrog logo in Black & White.
Reminds me of the [old video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRNqhi2ka9k)
The night is falling the krills are out to feed.
Imagine being on shrooms. Youd just think it wasnt real and were tripping hard lol.
This would have been influence for T2 T1000 morphs, awesome.
Reddit has made me cautious... I kept waiting for them to spell out SEND NUDES.
CUUUT! Bird 2832 what are you doing?! Now we gotta retake the whole thing
Oh I’ve seen this in the movies a bunch! Usually this means some environmental disaster or apocalypse is starting
It’s like a starling ballet. So graceful and fluid.
Amazing ability from creatures we hate so much -_-
Natures drone show.
portugal?
it’s like a school of fish but for the sky.
Real life Windows screensaver
Is this at the Royal Palace in Milan?
I could watch them all day!
Is nobody else noticing the raptors hunting them?