A new agent-based model suggests that Andean condors can reduce the energetic cost of long-distance flight by using the movements of other birds as continuously updated social information. In patchy, unpredictable landscapes, observing where companions find rising air currents helps individuals choose more efficient soaring and gliding routes. The benefit emerges without central direction: each bird responds to locally available cues, and the group collectively becomes a distributed sensor for changing atmospheric conditions.
https://phys.org/news/2026-07-flying-andean-condors-energy.html
