A single universal equation can closely approximate the frequency of wingbeats and fin strokes made by birds, insects, bats and whales, despite their different body sizes and wing shapes, researchers report in a new study.
The wing and fin beats of flying and diving animals can be predicted using just body mass and wing area
They found that flying and diving animals beat their wings or fins at a frequency that is proportional to the square root of their body mass, divided by their wing area. They tested the accuracy of the equation by plotting its predictions against published data on wingbeat frequencies for bees, moths, dragonflies, beetles, mosquitos, bats, and birds ranging in size from hummingbirds to swans.
The study shows that despite huge physical differences, animals as distinct as butterflies and bats have evolved a relatively constant relationship between body mass, wing area and wingbeat frequency. The researchers note that for swimming animals they didn't find publications with all the required information; data from different publications was pieced together to make comparisons, and in some cases animal density was estimated based on other information.
After blue whales, fin whales are the largest whales in the world -- and human beings have hunted both species to near-extinction. After the ban on commercial whaling in 1976, the stocks of these ...
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Flapping frequency of birds, insects, bats and whales predicted with just body mass and wing areaA single universal equation can closely approximate the frequency of wingbeats and fin strokes made by birds, insects, bats and whales, despite their different body sizes and wing shapes, Jens Højgaard Jensen and colleagues from Roskilde University in Denmark report in a new study published in PLOS ONE on June 5.
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