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On the Tails of Birds

On the Tails of Birds What are the aerodynamic functions of birds' tails, with their incredible diversity of form? Adrian L. R. Thomas irds' tails vary more than theif ing columns of hot air). Thermals wings. Tails can develop enor­ are turbulent and bumpy, and to keep Aerodynamic Bmous size and intricate elabo­ on course while circling, a buzzard rations in some sexually dimorphic has to constantly adjust its tail, twist­ considerations playa species (Andersson 1994, Balmford ing it one way and then the other. er al. 1993a, 1994, Evans and Tho­ At least three distinct aerodynamic large role in determining mas 1992, Norberg 1995, Winquist functions have been identified for and Lemon 1994). For example, the morphology of bird the tail. First, the tail can help main­ the long-tailed widow bird Eup/ee­ tain aerodynamic stability (like the tails, but other factors­ tes progne, a bird a little larger horizontal and vertical tail surfaces than a starling, has a tail more of an aircraft). Second, the tail can such as feeding style or than 1 m long; the lyre-tailed night­ be used to control the angle of attack jar Uropsalis lyra has a tail eight of the wings and balance the pitch­ vulnerability to http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png BioScience Oxford University Press

On the Tails of Birds

Thomas, Adrian L. R.
BioScience , Volume 47 (4) – Apr 1, 1997
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References (28)

Publisher
Oxford University Press
Copyright
© 1997 American Institute of Biological Sciences
ISSN
0006-3568
eISSN
1525-3244
DOI
10.2307/1313075
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

What are the aerodynamic functions of birds' tails, with their incredible diversity of form? Adrian L. R. Thomas irds' tails vary more than theif ing columns of hot air). Thermals wings. Tails can develop enor­ are turbulent and bumpy, and to keep Aerodynamic Bmous size and intricate elabo­ on course while circling, a buzzard rations in some sexually dimorphic has to constantly adjust its tail, twist­ considerations playa species (Andersson 1994, Balmford ing it one way and then the other. er al. 1993a, 1994, Evans and Tho­ At least three distinct aerodynamic large role in determining mas 1992, Norberg 1995, Winquist functions have been identified for and Lemon 1994). For example, the morphology of bird the tail. First, the tail can help main­ the long-tailed widow bird Eup/ee­ tain aerodynamic stability (like the tails, but other factors­ tes progne, a bird a little larger horizontal and vertical tail surfaces than a starling, has a tail more of an aircraft). Second, the tail can such as feeding style or than 1 m long; the lyre-tailed night­ be used to control the angle of attack jar Uropsalis lyra has a tail eight of the wings and balance the pitch­ vulnerability to

Journal

BioScience – Oxford University Press

Published: Apr 1, 1997

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