Melissa Bowlin and Martin Wikelski investigated how much energy Swainson’s thrushes (see picture on left) are using at different wind velocities by having the bird fly in a wind chamber (see picture to the right). Below, Melissa describes their main results:

In an article recently published in the scientific journal PLoS ONE, Martin Wikelski and I showed that small migratory birds use more energy when storms are developing and when winds are high than when it is clear and calm. Since global climate change may affect the frequency and severity of storms and winds, climate change could have large impacts on the amount of energy these birds have to use during flight. (more…)