When birds come in for a landing, they pitch back and heave their wings as they come to a stop in a perching maneuver. Some birds, researchers noticed, partially fold Keep reading
Tag: birds
Portraits of Flight
During lockdown, photographer Doris Mitsch turned her eyes to the sky and began capturing these mesmerizing composite images of animals in flight. Vultures, crows, starlings, gulls, and bats all feature Keep reading
“In Flight”
Photographer Mark Harvey captured these stunning portraits of birds in flight. From acrobatic songbirds to soaring raptors, the images show the incredible morphology of a bird’s wing during flight. Most Keep reading
Swimming in Line
When swimming in open waters, it pays to keep your ducks (or your goslings!) in a row. A recent study examined the waves generated behind adult water fowl and found Keep reading
Starlings Over Rome
Each winter millions of starlings migrate to Rome, where they form enormous murmurations in the sky above. The ephemeral and amorphous displays are driven by each bird responding to its Keep reading
Whiffling Geese
This wild photograph shows a goose flying upside down with its head turned 180 degrees in a behavior known as whiffling. In this orientation, the bird’s typical lift characteristics are Keep reading
Hovering Hawk
Birds have a level of control in flight that would make any engineer jealous. This 2021 Audubon Photography Award winning video by Bill Bryant shows off the skills of a Keep reading
Fish Versus Bird
You’ve seen birds catch fish, but have you ever seen a fish that catches birds? In this video, giant trevally fish hunt fledgling terns — including those in flight! To Keep reading
Loopy Networks and Bird Lungs
When mammals breathe, air flows back and forth inside our lungs. But in birds that inhale and exhale get transformed into one-directional flow inside their lungs. To figure out how, Keep reading
Adjusting for Gusts
In flight, birds must adjust quickly to wind gusts or risk crashing. Research shows that the structure of birds’ wings enables them to respond faster than their brains can. The Keep reading