Why do animals form swarms? - Maria R. D'Orsogna

Prevoditelj: Ivan Stamenković Recezent: Senzos Osijek

When desert locusts are well fed, they're solitary creatures.

Kada su pustinjski skakavci siti, oni su samačka bića.

But when food becomes scarce,

Ali kada hrane nedostaje,

hungry, desperate locusts crowd onto small patches of land

gladni, očajni skakavci skupljaju se na malim komadima tla

where they can still find something to eat.

gdje još uvijek mogu naći nešto za jelo.

Contact between different locusts' hind legs set off a slew of reactions

Kontakt između zadnjih nogu različitih skakavaca izaziva niz reakcija

that change their appearance and behavior.

koje mjenjaju njihov izgled i ponašanje.

Now, instead of shunning their peers, they seek each other out.

Sad, umjesto da bježe od svoje vrste, traže jedni druge.

The locusts eventually start marching and then fly away in large numbers

Skakavci počnu marširati i onda odlete u velikom broju

seeking a better habitat.

tražeći bolje stanište.

These gigantic swarms can host millions of insects

Ovi gigantski rojevi mogu biti domaćini milijunima insekata

and travel thousands of miles,

i putovati tisućama milja,

devastating vegetation and crops.

uništavajući vegetaciju i usjeve.

They stay close to each other, but not too close,

Ostaju blizu jedni drugima, ali ne preblizu,

or they might get eaten by their hungry neighbors.

ili bi mogli biti pojedeni od strane gladnih susjeda,

When many individual organisms, like locusts,

Kada mnogi individualni organizmi, kao skakavci,

bacteria,

bakterije,

anchovies,

inćuni

or bats,

ili šišmiši

come together and move as one coordinated entity,

se okupe i kreću se kao koordinirana jedinka,

that's a swarm.

to je roj.

From a handful of birds to billions of insects,

Od nekoliko ptica do milijarde insekata,

swarms can be almost any size.

rojevi mogu biti bilo koje veličine.

But what they have in common is that there's no leader.

Ali ono što im je zajedničko je da nema vođe.

Members of the swarm interact only with their nearest neighbors

Članovi roja u interakciji su sa susjedima

or through indirect cues.

ili kroz indirektne znakove.

Each individual follows simple rules:

Svaki individualac slijedi jednostavna pravila:

Travel in the same direction as those around you,

Kreći se u istom smjeru kao i oni oko tebe,

stay close,

ostani blizu

and avoid collisions.

i izbjegavaj sudare.

There are many benefits to traveling in a group like this.

Postoje mnoge blagodati ovakvog putovanja.

Small prey may fool predators by assembling into a swarm

Mali plijen može prevariti grabežljivce ako postane roj

that looks like a much bigger organism.

koji izgleda kao puno veći organizam.

And congregating in a large group

I okupljajući se u veliku grupu

reduces the chance that any single individual will be captured.

smanjuje šanse da pojedina jedinka bude uhvaćena.

Moving in the same direction as your neighbors

Krećući se u istom smjeru kao i susjedi

saves energy by sharing the effort of fighting wind or water resistance.

štedite energiju u borbi protiv otpora vjetra ili kiše.

It may even be easier to find a mate in a swarm.

Možda je lakše i naći partnera u roju.

Swarming can also allow groups of animals

Rojenje također dozvoljava grupama životinja

to accomplish tasks they couldn't do individually.

da ostvare zadatke koje ne bi mogli pojedinačno.

When hundreds or millions or organisms follow the same simple rules,

Kada stotine ili milijuni organizama slijede ista jednostavna pravila,

sophisticated behavior called swarm intelligence may arise.

sofisticirano ponašanje imena inteligencija roja se može pojaviti.

A single ant can't do much on its own,

Jedan mrav ne može puno napraviti sam,

but an ant colony can solve complex problems,

ali kolonija mrava može rješavati složene probleme

like building a nest

kao gradnja gnijezda

and finding the shortest path to a food source.

i pronalazak najkraćeg puta do hrane.

But sometimes, things can go wrong.

Ali ponekad, stvari mogu poći po krivu.

In a crowd, diseases spread more easily,

U grupi, bolesti se lakše šire,

and some swarming organisms may start eating each other if food is scarce.

i neki rojeći organizmi mogu početi jesti jedni druge ako nema hrane.

Even some of the benefits of swarms, like more efficient navigation,

Čak i neke blagodati rojeva, kao učinkovitija navigacija,

can have catastrophic consequences.

mogu imati katastrofalne posljedice.

Army ants are one example.

Vojni mravi su jedan primjer.

They lay down chemicals called pheromones

Polažu kemikalije imena feromoni

which signal their neighbors to follow the trail.

koji signaliziraju susjedima da slijede taj put.

This is good if the head of the group is marching towards a food source.

Ovo je dobro ako vođa grupe hoda prema izvoru hrane.

But occasionally the ants in the front can veer off course.

Ali ponekad mravi naprijed mogu odlutati s putanje.

The whole swarm can get caught in a loop following the pheromone trail

Cijeli roj može upasti u petlju slijedeći trag feromona

until they die of exhaustion.

dok ne umru od iscrpljenosti.

Humans are notoriously individualistic, though social, animals.

Ljudi su individualne, ali društvene, životinje.

But is there anything we can learn from collective swarm-based organization?

Ali možemo li išta naučiti iz kolektivne organizacije roja?

When it comes to technology, the answer is definitely yes.

Kada je riječ o tehnologiji, odgovor je definitivno da.

Bats can teach drones how to navigate confined spaces without colliding,

Šišmiši mogu naučiti dronove kako da se kreću uskim prostorima,

fish can help design software for safer driving,

ribe mogu pomoći dizajnirati software za sigurniju vožnju,

and insects are inspiring robot teams that can assist search and rescue missions.

a insekti inspiriraju timove robota koji mogu pomoći u misijama spašavanja.

For swarms of humans, it's perhaps more complicated

Za rojeve ljudi, možda je kompliciranije

and depends on the motives and leadership.

i ovisi o motivima i vodstvu.

Swarm behavior in human populations can sometimes manifest as a destructive mob.

Ponašanje roja kod ljudi može se nekad pokazati kao destruktivna rulja.

But collective action can also produce a crowd-sourced scientific breakthrough

Ali zajedničko djelovanje može nekad stvoriti i znanstvene napretke,

an artistic expression,

ili umjetničko izražavanje,

or a peaceful global revolution.

ili mirnu globalnu revoluciju.