Into the Wind

 

In the blah and blustery weather earlier this week I watched birds at the shoreline succeeding not only with the marvel of flight but against a stiff wind.

Great Black-backed Gull

Gulls are the aerial masters of the environment. They shift their wings to meet varying conditions and purposes. The one pictured here has cupped its wings to emphasize buoyancy rather than forward movement,

Ring-billed Gull

This Ring-billed Gull maintains a straighter wing configuration with its intention of traveling rather than lingering.

Laughing Gull

This Laughing Gull is similarly maximizing aerodynamic lift. Air passing the longer, curving upper surface of its wings creates a vacuum above that pulls the bird up and counters gravity.

Herring Gull hovering above Common Eiders

This gull is not flapping its wings at all. It has curved them out with feathers splayed to catch the onrushing force of the wind keeping it aloft directly above the Eiders it intends to rob of food brought up from the bottom.

Turkey Vulture

A Turkey Vulture soared overhead employing both these techniques to float in the sky while spiraling over coastal terrain.

Northern Gannet

Interestingly, as I looked out into the Bay almost all the birds were flying from left to right into a stiff north east breeze.

Double-crested Cormorant

It seemed counter-intuitive that they would choose to head into the wind.

White-winged Scoters

Quite apparently the lifting energy of the moving air was helping them more than the momentum lost to the opposing force of the wind.

Surf Scoters

I changed my perspective to theirs, from flying 'against the wind' to flying 'into the wind.' 

Common Loon

Birds flying with that wind to their rear seemed jet propelled. The power assist made them considerably more of a photographic challenge than the moderately paced ones borrowing lift.

Peregrine Falcon

Along the coast came one of the fastest flyers in the world. The Peregrine Falcon artfully maintained a stationery hunting position in the sky by 'kiting' or balancing all the forces affecting its flight. It is supremely agile on long tapered wings.

Bald Eagle

Soaring downwind in the other direction this Bald Eagle stayed aloft on broad wings held consistently horizontally, scanning the coastline for a ready meal dead or alive. Perhaps its wing structure and anatomy dictated the passive flight terms. Or perhaps it lacked the dexterity and temperament to finesse the wind in a headlong merging of energies.