For humans, transcontinental flight without jet engines, pressurized cabins, and tens of thousands of kilograms of fuel is almost unthinkable. But each year, bar-headed geese fly from Mongolia to India and back, crossing the world’s highest mountains with just their wings and a little extra body fat. Now researchers know just how these 3-kilogram birds make this journey. Rather than flying high for the whole trip, the geese follow the terrain, taking advantage of updrafts to regain altitude as needed.
“The answer comes in the form of clever behaviors for exercise efficiency,” says Terrie Williams, an exercise and environmental physiologist at the University of California, Santa Cruz, who was not involved in the work. These behaviors enabled the birds “to conquer altitudes that man will never achieve without a plane.”
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