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This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --Boundary_(ID_JG4ZPWZQXXLnZyr1mHJlow) Content-type: text/plain; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT Subject: Re: Fw: Six Killdeer From: David & Alison Webster <dwebster AT glinx.com> Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2010 19:26:55 -0400 Hi Hans, Could it be that sufficiently gusty and high tail-winds play havoc with the feather alignment that is necessary for flight stability ? Hi David and all, The only way to be sure about flight stability of small birds and strong tail winds with or without turbulence is to study them in flight. I suspect this would be more dangerous to observers in aircraft than to the birds. I watched the Killdeer flying around Crystal Crescent Beach and they had no problems with the wind, although once over the open ocean the story could be different. There would be no turning around if they got in distress. Calamities have occurred over the Gulf of Mexico where tens of thousands of birds have perished when a strong head wind is suddenly met. The short crossing of Lake Erie to Point Pelee National Park, a mere 80 kilometres, is often very stressful for many birds because of head winds. This is why folks stampede to the point at first light to get close-ups of exhausted birds, a bizarre ritual in my opinion. I have noticed that larger birds such as gulls, cormorants and gannets sideslip in strong winds, that is they fly at right angle to the wind, much like a sail boat attaining its optimum speed. Perhaps this flight strategy would permit better stability. Nevertheless, it's not the speed of the tail wind that is the issue but turbulence. I've flown from Los Angeles to Toronto riding a hurricane speed jet stream and the flight has been very smooth, with a much appreciated early arrival. Hans ----- Original Message ----- From: Hans Toom To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca Sent: Wednesday, December 22, 2010 3:46 PM Subject: [NatureNS] Fw: Six Killdeer ----- Original Message ----- From: Hans Toom To: ns-rba@yahoogroups.com Sent: Wednesday, December 22, 2010 3:46 PM Subject: Six Killdeer I managed a walk this morning at Crystal Crescent Beach Provincial Park just before it started to rain again. There are six Killdeer still present, one at the first beach, two at the second beach and three at the fourth beach(Mackerel Cove). The current north-eastern gale would carry these birds to the Carolinas in a day, yet they linger. Whenever we have warp drive is when we will begin to understand the instinct of birds. Hans Toom Portuguese Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada http://www.hanstoom.com/ --Boundary_(ID_JG4ZPWZQXXLnZyr1mHJlow) Content-type: text/html; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" http-equiv=Content-Type> <META name=GENERATOR content="MSHTML 8.00.6001.18999"> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial><A name=1293060684><B><FONT size=3>Subject: Re: Fw: Six Killdeer</FONT></B></A><BR><FONT size=3>From: David & Alison Webster <dwebster AT glinx.com><BR>Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2010 19:26:55 -0400<BR></FONT><PRE><FONT size=3 face=Arial>Hi Hans, Could it be that sufficiently gusty and high tail-winds play havoc with the feather alignment that is necessary for flight stability ?</FONT> </PRE></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>Hi David and all,</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>The only way to be sure about flight stability of small birds and strong tail winds with or without turbulence is to study them in flight. I suspect this would be more dangerous to observers in aircraft than to the birds.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>I watched the Killdeer flying around Crystal Crescent Beach and they had no problems with the wind, although once over the open ocean the story could be different. There would be no turning around if they got in distress. Calamities have occurred over the Gulf of Mexico where tens of thousands of birds have perished when a strong head wind is suddenly met.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>The short crossing of Lake Erie to Point Pelee National Park, a mere 80 kilometres, is often very stressful for many birds because of head winds. This is why folks stampede to the point at first light to get close-ups of exhausted birds, a bizarre ritual in my opinion.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>I have noticed that larger birds such as gulls, cormorants and gannets sideslip in strong winds, that is they fly at right angle to the wind, much like a sail boat attaining its optimum speed. Perhaps this flight strategy would permit better stability.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>Nevertheless, it's not the speed of the tail wind that is the issue but turbulence. I've flown from Los Angeles to Toronto riding a hurricane speed jet stream and the flight has been very smooth, with a much appreciated early arrival.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>Hans</FONT></DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE style="BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px" dir=ltr> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial; BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A title=htoom@hfx.eastlink.ca href="mailto:htoom@hfx.eastlink.ca">Hans Toom</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=naturens@chebucto.ns.ca href="mailto:naturens@chebucto.ns.ca">naturens@chebucto.ns.ca</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, December 22, 2010 3:46 PM</DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> [NatureNS] Fw: Six Killdeer</DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- <DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A title=htoom@hfx.eastlink.ca href="mailto:htoom@hfx.eastlink.ca">Hans Toom</A> </DIV> <DIV><B>To:</B> <A title=ns-rba@yahoogroups.com href="mailto:ns-rba@yahoogroups.com">ns-rba@yahoogroups.com</A> </DIV> <DIV><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, December 22, 2010 3:46 PM</DIV> <DIV><B>Subject:</B> Six Killdeer</DIV></DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>I managed a walk this morning at Crystal Crescent Beach Provincial Park just before it started to rain again. There are six <STRONG>Killdeer </STRONG>still present, one at the first beach, two at the second beach and three at the fourth beach(Mackerel Cove).</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>The current north-eastern gale would carry these birds to the Carolinas in a day, yet they linger. Whenever we have warp drive is when we will begin to understand the instinct of birds.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>Hans Toom<BR>Portuguese Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada<BR><A href="http://www.hanstoom.com/">http://www.hanstoom.com/</A></FONT></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML> --Boundary_(ID_JG4ZPWZQXXLnZyr1mHJlow)--
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