Birds observe the speed limits on the roads, even if drivers ignore it

On roads with higher speed permitted bird will rise into the air to avoid a collision with oncoming vehicles, but where the speed of vehicles is limited, they can "accelerate" longer.

The researchers found that this behavior is due to the speed limits and not the result of evaluation of bird speed of approaching vehicles. Experiments were carried out in the west of France, and researchers tracked the behavior of birds on roads with a speed limit of 20, 50, 90 and 110 kilometers per hour. The car starts moving, following the speed limits or intentionally exceeding the speed, and to calculate the beginning of the flight of birds in the vicinity of the vehicle used by the timer.

Birds do not respond to the speed of the car regardless of whether it is consistent with the specified standards on road signs, and in any case on highways take off faster. Total has been tested 21 species of birds. Researchers believe that the birds behave in a similar way as to adapt to the characteristic habitat.

As cars increase mortality among the birds, they have to respond to traffic just as they respond to predator. Curiously, the birds are in the middle of the road, however, are more cautious than those that are on the sidelines.

via factroom.ru