Re: speculation

[Ronald Orenstein <ornstn@inforamp.net>]

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At 13:39 08/10/96 -0500, Chris Illes wrote:

>Please pardon my perhaps ignorant question on this one but isn't it true 
>that the leg, head and body feathers of a bird contribute nothing to it's 
>flight capabilities?

Here's one for the aerodynamic experts - I have often wondered if the change
in outline that contour feathers give to a bird's body might in some way act
to reduce drag or wind eddies around its body and thus make it more
aerodynamically efficient.  Certainly they produce a marked change in the
shape of a bird's body, particularly around its neck.  I have no idea if
this is really so, though.
--
Ronald I. Orenstein                           Phone: (905) 820-7886 (home)
International Wildlife Coalition              Fax/Modem: (905) 569-0116 (home)
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