Science Daily highlighted research by Paolo Segre, a UBC zoologist, on hummingbirds’ ability to accelerate and turn.
“It appears the mechanics of high-altitude flight slow down the birds well before their respiratory system has an issue handling the lower-oxygen environment,” Segre said. “Just like a helicopter’s rotors lose ‘traction’ at high altitudes with low air densities, the hummingbirds’ wings don’t perform as well.”
