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The Master Of " G Forces "
New research puts us one step closer to unlocking the secret. Researchers from Dalian University of Technology in China used computer tomography (CT) scans of a real-life woodpecker to construct a detailed, digital model of its body. Then they used software to simulate the bird's pecking--a process that can force the woodpecker's head to endure up to 1500 g-force units. For comparison's sake, a passenger on a typical roller coaster will only experience about 5 g's.
Science China Press
A schematic of the woodpecker's pecking process.
The study, published this month in Science China: Technological Sciences, shows that the key to the woodpecker's survival lies in how it converts the energy it absorbs. When a woodpecker strikes a tree, the impact energy--energy that is released during a collision--is converted to strain energy in the body. Too much strain in the head can be catastrophic, but the woodpecker's incredible anatomy--including a specialized beak and skull--redirects most of the strain into the rest of the body, instead of the head.
In fact, 99.7 percent of the strain energy is converted in the woodpecker's body, and only 0.3 percent is converted in the head. This small amount of strain is quickly dissipated from the head in the form of heat. This process protects the brain from damage, but causes temperatures inside the skull to rise quickly, meaning woodpeckers have to take frequent breaks while they're pecking. In this way, the woodpecker's whole body is involved in the fight to protect its brain from damage.
Source ( Audubon Magazine )
The Master Of " G Forces "
New research puts us one step closer to unlocking the secret. Researchers from Dalian University of Technology in China used computer tomography (CT) scans of a real-life woodpecker to construct a detailed, digital model of its body. Then they used software to simulate the bird's pecking--a process that can force the woodpecker's head to endure up to 1500 g-force units. For comparison's sake, a passenger on a typical roller coaster will only experience about 5 g's.
Science China Press
A schematic of the woodpecker's pecking process.
The study, published this month in Science China: Technological Sciences, shows that the key to the woodpecker's survival lies in how it converts the energy it absorbs. When a woodpecker strikes a tree, the impact energy--energy that is released during a collision--is converted to strain energy in the body. Too much strain in the head can be catastrophic, but the woodpecker's incredible anatomy--including a specialized beak and skull--redirects most of the strain into the rest of the body, instead of the head.
In fact, 99.7 percent of the strain energy is converted in the woodpecker's body, and only 0.3 percent is converted in the head. This small amount of strain is quickly dissipated from the head in the form of heat. This process protects the brain from damage, but causes temperatures inside the skull to rise quickly, meaning woodpeckers have to take frequent breaks while they're pecking. In this way, the woodpecker's whole body is involved in the fight to protect its brain from damage.
Source ( Audubon Magazine )