Jeweled Hummingbirds Use Brute Strength to Outmaneuver Rivals

Scientists are taking a closer look at hummingbirds and how they manage to outmaneuver most other birds. It turns out that these birds actually rely on brute strength for their abilities.

In this latest study, the researchers examined 20 Anna's hummingbirds. In order to determine the strength of the birds, the researchers attached a necklace of weighted beads to each bird. Hummingbirds are able to fly directly upward, which means that their maximum weight-lifting ability could be measured by how many of the beads they were able to life.

They found that the birds with the highest muscle capacity were able to accelerate faster and make more demanding, complex turns. This was particularly surprising since the researchers expected wing morphology and body mass to have more of an influence than strength.

"A fundamental question is what we should focus on for engineering the autonomous vehicles predicted to be an increasing part of our lives," said Doug Altshuler, one of the researchers, in a news release. "Our work suggests that for increasing maneuverability, we should focus on increasing the maximum force that the motors are able to produce."

For hummingbirds, the burst capacity of their muscles is an important evolutionary function. Their natural escape response is the fly vertically; in addition to the power needed to hover normally, they need a reserve of power to accelerate away from predators or competitors.

The findings could help with the creation of airborne vehicles and other technological advances. This is particularly important when designing a vehicle with high maneuverability.

The findings are published in the journal eLife.

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