QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s):
Home     Help     Feedback     Subscriptions     Archive     Search     Table of Contents

First published online May 21, 2007
Journal of Experimental Biology 210, 1897-1911 (2007)
Published by The Company of Biologists 2007
doi: 10.1242/jeb.002055

This Article Figures Only Full Text Full Text (PDF) Supplementary Material Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Related articles in JEB Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Hedrick, T. L. Articles by Biewener, A. A. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Hedrick, T. L. Articles by Biewener, A. A. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Low speed maneuvering flight of the rose-breasted cockatoo (Eolophus roseicapillus). I. Kinematic and neuromuscular control of turning

T. L. Hedrick^1,* and A. A. Biewener²

¹ Department of Biology, CB 3280 Coker Hall, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3280, USA
² Concord Field Station, MCZ, Harvard University, Old Causeway Road, Bedford, MA 01730, USA

^* Author for correspondence (e-mail: thedrick{at}bio.unc.edu)

Accepted 6 March 2007

Maneuvering flight has long been recognized as an important component of the natural behavior of many bird species, but has been the subject of little experimental work. Here we examine the kinematics and neuromuscular control of turning flight in the rose-breasted cockatoo Eolophus roseicapillus (N=6), testing predictions of maneuvering flight and control based on aerodynamic theory and prior kinematic and neuromuscular studies. Six cockatoos were trained to navigate between two perches placed in an L-shaped flight corridor, making a 90° turn midway through each flight. Flights were recorded with three synchronized high-speed video cameras placed outside the corridor, allowing a three-dimensional reconstruction of wing and body kinematics through the turn. We simultaneously collected electromyography recordings from bilateral implants in the pectoralis, supracoracoideus, biceps brachii and extensor metacarpi radialis muscles. The cockatoos maneuvered using flapping, banked turns with an average turn radius of 0.92 m. The mean rate of change in heading during a complete wingbeat varied through the turn and was significantly correlated to roll angle at mid-downstroke. Changes in roll angle were found to include both within-wingbeat and among-wingbeat components that bear no direct relationship to one another. Within-wingbeat changes in roll were dominated by the inertial effects while among-wingbeat changes in roll were likely the result of both inertial and aerodynamic effects.

Key words: avian, maneuvering, biomechanics, flight, dynamics, Eolophus roseicapillus

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

Related articles in JEB:

CORNERING COCKATOOS

Laura Blackburn
JEB 2007 210: i. [Full Text]  

This article has been cited by other articles:

				C. J. Clark Courtship dives of Anna's hummingbird offer insights into flight performance limits Proc R Soc B, September 7, 2009; 276(1670): 3047 - 3052. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				T. L. Hedrick, B. Cheng, and X. Deng Wingbeat Time and the Scaling of Passive Rotational Damping in Flapping Flight Science, April 10, 2009; 324(5924): 252 - 255. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. M Walker, A. L.R Thomas, and G. K Taylor Photogrammetric reconstruction of high-resolution surface topographies and deformable wing kinematics of tethered locusts and free-flying hoverflies J R Soc Interface, April 6, 2009; 6(33): 351 - 366. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J. Iriarte-Diaz and S. M. Swartz Kinematics of slow turn maneuvering in the fruit bat Cynopterus brachyotis J. Exp. Biol., November 1, 2008; 211(21): 3478 - 3489. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				R. Z. German, A. W. Crompton, and A. J. Thexton Variation in EMG activity: a hierarchical approach Integr. Comp. Biol., August 1, 2008; 48(2): 283 - 293. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. M. Swartz, K. S. Breuer, and D. J. Willis Aeromechanics in aeroecology: flight biology in the aerosphere Integr. Comp. Biol., July 1, 2008; 48(1): 85 - 98. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				G. K. Taylor, M. Bacic, R. J. Bomphrey, A. C. Carruthers, J. Gillies, S. M. Walker, and A. L. R. Thomas New experimental approaches to the biology of flight control systems J. Exp. Biol., January 15, 2008; 211(2): 258 - 266. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				B. W. Tobalske Biomechanics of bird flight J. Exp. Biol., September 15, 2007; 210(18): 3135 - 3146. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				L. Blackburn CORNERING COCKATOOS J. Exp. Biol., June 1, 2007; 210(11): i - ii. [Full Text] [PDF]

				T. L. Hedrick, J. R. Usherwood, and A. A. Biewener Low speed maneuvering flight of the rose-breasted cockatoo (Eolophus roseicapillus). II. Inertial and aerodynamic reorientation J. Exp. Biol., June 1, 2007; 210(11): 1912 - 1924. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]