Soaring birds — like osprey, eagles, falcons, even vultures — can stay aloft in the air seemingly forever, rarely flapping their wings. They glide along rising air currents in a way that has ...

Wind turbines may seem innocuous enough, but they have the potential to reshape the air birds fly through. In a recent Scientific Reports paper, researchers found that a gliding bird’s lift-to-drag ...

A frigate in flight. Some of the juveniles in the study stayed continuously aloft for more than two months. How do frigate birds—seabirds with a 7-foot wingspan—stay aloft for months at a time? Their ...

The Wright Brothers studied bird flight before they designed the first airplane. Now modern aircraft fly higher and faster than any bird, yet no manufactured device matches the graceful movements and ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about biodiversity and the hidden quirks of the natural world. Engineers are finding new ways to make wind turbines more ...

New research has revealed when it comes to flying the largest of birds don't rely on flapping to move around. Instead they make use of air currents to keep them airborne for hours at a time. A study ...