Social Behavior in Birds

The study of social behaviors has generated significant insights into how organisms can respond to—and are subsequently shaped by—environmental pressures. Sociality is particularly widespread in birds. Whereas much is known about how sociality shapes their breeding ecology, remarkably little is known about what birds do when they are being the most social, such as when they flock during the nonbreeding season. The bias in knowledge of social behavior during breeding versus nonbreeding largely arises from the natural history of birds that makes them easier to study at the nest. Technological advances, such as miniaturization of the Global Positioning System, are releasing ornithologists from methodological restrictions to study birds “on the move” and, in doing so, opening the door to gaining fascinating insights into the complexity of their social lives.