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Collective decision-making in biological systems requires all individuals inthe group to go through a behavioural change of state. During this transition,the efficiency of information transport is a key factor to prevent cohesionloss and preserve robustness. The precise mechanism by which natural groupsachieve such efficiency, though, is currently not fully understood. Here, wepresent an experimental study of starling flocks performing collective turns inthe field. We find that the information to change direction propagates acrossthe flock linearly in time with negligible attenuation, hence keeping groupdecoherence to a minimum. This result contrasts with current theories ofcollective motion, which predict a slower and dissipative transport ofdirectional information. We propose a novel theory whose cornerstone is theexistence of a conserved spin current generated by the gauge symmetry of thesystem. The theory turns out to be mathematically identical to that ofsuperfluid transport in liquid helium and it explains the dissipationlesspropagating mode observed in turning flocks. Superfluidity also provides aquantitative expression for the speed of propagation of the information,according to which transport must be swifter the stronger the group'sorientational order. This prediction is verified by the data. We argue that thelink between strong order and efficient decision-making required bysuperfluidity may be the adaptive drive for the high degree of behaviouralpolarization observed in many living groups. The mathematical equivalencebetween superfluid liquids and turning flocks is a compelling demonstration ofthe far-reaching consequences of symmetry and conservation laws acrossdifferent natural systems.

Superfluid transport of information in turning flocks of starlings