A flock of sheep runs in circles for almost two weeks continuously. The mystery has gone viral on social media.
A herd of sheep has been caught running in a circle for at least 12 days in China, in a mystery that has gone around the world on social media.
The images have caused strangeness and have gone viral, but from England a scientist has argued a reason for this behavior.
Matt Bell, professor and director of the Department of Agriculture at the University of Hartpury, points out that one possible answer is herd imitation.
As he comments, these animals have a social instinct that tells them to follow the animal in front of them to avoid predators and protect the other members of the group.
“Sheep seem to be penned for long periods, and this could lead to stereotypical behaviour, with repeated circling due to frustration at being in the pen and limited as to where they can go. This is not good,” he told Newsweek. “Then the other sheep join in like herd animals.”
For days, authorities and experts have tried to explain the ethological reason for the events.
However, all the official and expert versions contradict each other, in such a way that it is difficult to extract the correct explanation.
According to other experts, the explanation lies in the fact that sheep suffer from listeriosis, a bacterial infection that, in the case of sheep, one of its symptoms is circling.