Animal groups: pack, herd, flock

Pack

A wolf pack is usually simply a family: the parents and their young from one or two years.

💡 Did you know? The old 'alpha wolf' idea is outdated: in the wild the parents lead, by being the parents.

Pride

A pride is built around related females with cubs, plus one or two males.

💡 Did you know? Lions are the only cat species that lives in permanent groups.

Herd

The herd is led by the oldest female, the matriarch, whose memory for waterholes saves lives in droughts.

💡 Did you know? Bulls leave the herd as teenagers and roam alone or in loose bachelor groups.

Flock

Sheep are strongly social: a single sheep kept alone becomes stressed very quickly.

💡 Did you know? A sheepdog does not push the flock: it works with their flight instinct and steers it.

Herd

Herds have a stable pecking order, and cows recognise dozens of herd mates by face.

💡 Did you know? Cows have best friends: separate them and their stress hormones measurably rise.

Herd

Wild herds consist of mares with foals and one stallion; young males form their own bands.

💡 Did you know? The stallion does not lead the herd: an experienced lead mare usually does.

Herd

Unlike sheep, goats browse on shrubs and trees, which makes herds useful for clearing scrub.

💡 Did you know? Goats can tell human faces apart and prefer the smiling ones.

School

Thousands of fish move as one body, holding their spacing through the lateral line organ.

💡 Did you know? A school has no leader: each fish follows only a few simple distance rules.

Flock

Starlings gather in evening flocks of tens of thousands that roll over the roost like smoke.

💡 Did you know? Flying in formation saves energy: only the leading bird meets the full air resistance.

Swarm

The dancing columns above paths and ponds are mostly males waiting for females.

💡 Did you know? The hum of a swarm comes from wingbeats: that is how the sexes recognise each other.

Colony

A colony holds 40,000 to 60,000 bees in summer, with a single queen.

💡 Did you know? When part of the colony leaves with the old queen, that group is called a swarm instead.

Colony

A wood ant colony can number more than a million individuals.

💡 Did you know? A colony lives as long as its queen: in some species that is over 20 years.

Pack

The pack is handled as one unit; in drag hunting 20 to 40 hounds follow a single scent line.

💡 Did you know? The term comes from the same root as 'package': a bundle held together.

Sounder

A sounder consists of related sows with piglets; adult boars live alone.

💡 Did you know? The sounder is led by the oldest sow: shoot her and the group's order falls apart.

Colony

Emperor penguin colonies hold tens of thousands of pairs that huddle together for warmth.

💡 Did you know? Parents find their own chick among tens of thousands by call alone.