"Selfish herders" finish last in mobile animal flocks

The selfish herd is an intuitive hypothesis, that those which crowd to the centre of a group will be safer from predators. The problem with this mechanism emerges when alternatives do even better! This study reveals that individuals aligning with their neighbors, rather than seeking central positions, are more successful at evading capture during fleeing behaviors.

https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rspb.2022.1653