Why Do Birds Migrate Like This?
Buy the book: "Where the Animals Go: Tracking Wildlife with Technology in 50 Maps and Graphics" at http://www.wheretheanimalsgo.com Copyright 2016 by James Cheshire and Oliver Uberti. First...
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Hi, this is Emily from MinuteEarth. Each autumn, tens of billions of birds fly from higher latitudes to the tropics, and if they went straight - as the crow flies - their trips would be thousands of miles long. But instead, they often zig and zag along the way – adding an extra thousand miles or more to their journeys, which actually helps them get to their destinations faster. Winds on Earth regularly blow in specific directions, and when birds fly with the wind at least partially at their backs, they can greatly increase their flying speed compared with birds flying against the wind. So even if, say, a swallow has to go out of its way and fly 25% farther to take advantage of the wind, if it doubles its airspeed velocity by doing so, it can get there in ...
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Hi, this is Emily from MinuteEarth. Each autumn, tens of billions of birds fly from higher latitudes to the tropics, and if they went straight - as the crow flies - their trips would be thousands of miles long. But instead, they often zig and zag along the way – adding an extra thousand miles or more to their journeys, which actually helps them get to their destinations faster. Winds on Earth regularly blow in specific directions, and when birds fly with the wind at least partially at their backs, they can greatly increase their flying speed compared with birds flying against the wind. So even if, say, a swallow has to go out of its way and fly 25% farther to take advantage of the wind, if it doubles its airspeed velocity by doing so, it can get there in ...
