Studying woodpecker head bones could help scientists make helmets that protect the brain from serious injury.
Woodpecker research results show that despite their unique hunting habits, this bird has no nervous effects or severe trauma.
When using a sharp beak to continuously strike at high speed on the trunk of the tree, woodpeckers at the same time experience terrible pressure on the head – pressure that can lead to death. But in fact, this bird is still safe.
That’s why experts are studying how woodpeckers are protected from the damaging effects of tree trunk surgery, in the hopes that new approaches can be found to prevent and treat head trauma.
Head injuries are one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Brain damage is estimated to account for 15% of deaths and disabilities. These injuries can occur under the influence of a sudden change in head speed.
Even so, the law that applies to humans does not appear to impact woodpeckers, although they often use their beaks to dissect the trunk at speeds between 6-10 m / s, and sometimes generate a force pressed to 1000G.
Experts from Beijing Aviation University and Hong Kong Polytechnic University chose the subject of the study to be a woodpecker that inhabits the Eurasian continent and is the most common species in the UK. The results of the study published in the scientific journal PLoS ONE showed that these birds are equipped with sophisticated shock reduction systems inside the brain.
The researchers used high-speed cameras and performed peak brain scans to determine the structure of the skull. They found that head and beak structures play a critical role in reducing the impact of collisions. And this impact protection system is not based on a single factor but on the result of a combination of different morphological characteristics.
