Intrigued by the remarkable ability of birds to remain stable in the face of powerful winds, aerospace engineers in the UK have carried out a study to examine the phenomenon in great detail. By ...

The barn owl’s tail plays an unexpected role in flight by making the bird more aerodynamic, which may have implications for drone design. In aeronautical engineering, anything that provides lift – ...

Aerospace engineers have used studies of birds in flight to further research into improved aerodynamics, the development of shapeshifting wings, how mid-air collisions might be better avoided, and ...

Ms. Ackerman is the author of “What an Owl Knows: The New Science of the World’s Most Enigmatic Birds,” from which this essay is excerpted. When the first lucky observers spotted Flaco, the Eurasian ...