Male sandgrouse are flying sponges, soaking up large amounts of water in their feathers in faraway desert watering holes before flying many kilometers to deliver it to their thirsty children.
A small group of birds, the sandgrouse, that dwell in Africa’s forbidding deserts have long mystified and delighted observers because they absorb and carry water in their breast feathers whilst flying long distances to water their thirsty chicks. How do they do this? Thanks to the use of high resolution microscopes and cutting-edge 3D technologies, a team of researchers at Johns Hopkins University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have solved the mystery of how sandgrouse feathers can hold so much water (Figure 1).
“It’s super fascinating to see how nature managed to create structures so perfectly efficient to take in and hold water”, lead author, systems engineer Jochen Mueller, an assistant professor in Johns Hopkins’ Department of Civil and Systems Engineering, said in a statement. Professor Mueller’s research expertise exists at the intersection of science, application and design, and his primary interests are using 3D printing and manufacturing along with computational design to create smart materials. He currently holds eight patents.
This African Bird’s Superpower May Inspire A Better Water Bottle
A small group of birds, the sandgrouse, that dwell in Africa’s forbidding deserts have long mystified and delighted observers because they absorb and carry water in their breast feathers whilst flying long distances to water their thirsty chicks. How do they do this? Thanks to the use of high resolution microscopes and cutting-edge 3D technologies, a team of researchers at Johns Hopkins University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have solved the mystery of how sandgrouse feathers can hold so much water (Figure 1).
“It’s super fascinating to see how nature managed to create structures so perfectly efficient to take in and hold water”, lead author, systems engineer Jochen Mueller, an assistant professor in Johns Hopkins’ Department of Civil and Systems Engineering, said in a statement. Professor Mueller’s research expertise exists at the intersection of science, application and design, and his primary interests are using 3D printing and manufacturing along with computational design to create smart materials. He currently holds eight patents.
This African Bird’s Superpower May Inspire A Better Water Bottle