A crow overlooks a roadFLICKR, MIKE LAWRENCE
As vehicles approach, birds in the road often appear unconcerned, until suddenly they take flight to avoid whizzing cars. The distance from an approaching car at which some birds take off varies depending on the local speed limit, according to a study published today (August 21) in Biology Letters.
Study coauthor Pierre Legagneux measured when birds took flight as he approached them at varying speeds while driving around the French countryside in a white Peugeot. He measured the takeoff distances of 134 birds including 21 species while traveling through zones with speed limits of 20, 50, 90, and 110 kilometers per hour (approximately 12, 31, 56, and 68 miles per hour).
The higher the speed limit, the sooner the birds flew away. But when Legagneux ...
