I have understood that birds are living science far more than we human beings, when I observed some bird groups flying in V shape. I also understood that all the living beings help each other in need (except man). V formations helps them to save energy. The leader leads by heading the group. When the leader becomes tired, one of the birds next to the leader takes the charge. And thus they travel across the world. Last year I got a chance to click this beautiful scene. When I thought of posting this photo in TAAM (The Arts & Me), Google search gave more information.
V Formation
A V formation or a skeinis the symmetric V-shaped flight formation of migratory birds (geese, ducks, etc) as mentioned in wikipedia. We human beings have adopted this V formation technique to improve the fuel efficiency of aircraft. V formations are used on military flight missions for the same purpose.
(Courtesy Wikipedia)
More about V Formation in Birds
When a bird flies, it leaves a wake. Another bird can get a boost from an updraft of air in that wake by flying behind the first bird and off to the side. When a bunch of birds use this trick, they form a V.
Normally, the leader of a V-formation would be a parent bird. When the birds fly in a V, they position themselves in just the right places to exploit the updraft in another bird’s wake, which lets them conserve their energy. They also time the flapping of their wings to take full advantage of that updraft, by making a wingtip follow the same undulating path through the air as the wingtip of the bird up ahead. And when one bird flies directly behind another, it adjusts its flapping to reduce the effects of the wake’s downdraft. So birds can either sense or predict the wake left by their flock mates and adjust their flapping accordingly.
(Courtesy: FoxNews)
Amazing and informative post followed by a nice photo. Thanks for sharing this 🙂
Thanks for the beautiful photo and the information on V formation.