Researchers Use Dead Birds As Spy Drones To Monitor Wildlife

In a study that was presented at the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics SciTech 2023 Forum in January, a group of researchers disclosed how they successfully developed spy drones from the bodies of stuffed dead birds.

Spy drones made from dead birds

The study’s lead author, Mostafa Hassanalian, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, told the New Scientist that, “instead of using artificial materials for building drones, we can use the dead birds and re-engineer them as a drone. We can use the dead birds and re-engineer them as a drone.”

The spy drones that are made from dead birds are called “ornithopters” because the way they fly resembles the flight patterns of birds. The drones have wings and are powered by propellers.

For the purpose of the study, the researchers assembled parts of taxidermied birds and artificial…