Date: June 18, 2019
Source: PLOS
New
research publishing June 18 in the open-access journal, PLOS Biology, led
by Dr Lucy Taylor from the University of Oxford's Department of Zoology now
reveals that homing pigeons fit in one extra wingbeat per second when flying in
pairs compared to flying solo.
Birds
that fly in 'V'-formations, such as geese, are able to conserve energy by
flying in aerodynamically optimal positions. By contrast, in species that don't
fly in formation, such as homing pigeons, the costs and benefits of flocking
have been less well understood.
The
research indicates that flying with another bird requires more energy compared
to flying solo. 'The results of this study were completely unexpected. Energy
is the currency of life so it's astonishing that the birds are prepared to pay
a substantial energetic cost to fly together," said lead-author, Dr Lucy
Taylor.
The team
used high frequency GPS and accelerometer bio-loggers to measure how pigeons
changed their wingbeat patterns when flying in pairs compared to flying solo.
The accelerometers act much like fitness trackers but, instead of measuring
steps, the researchers measure wingbeats. 'The increase in wingbeat frequency
is equivalent to Usain Bolt running the 100m sprint at his usual speed, whilst
fitting in nearly one extra step per second. The pigeons are flapping faster
when flying in pairs but hardly going any faster," said Dr Taylor.
No comments:
Post a Comment