Boffins at the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology in America have started building drones that fly, move, and look exactly like birds – by constructing them from actual dead birds.
Thanks to electronic motorised parts and lighweight rods fitted inside the ethically sourced corpses, the wings mimick natural flapping actions and sounds with eery precision, making them appear convincingly real when airborne.
Some models have cameras installed in the chest cavity, others are fitted with shape-memory alloy claws that can grip a branch, while a duck has a convincing paddling action thanks to a small electric drive powering its prosthetic webbed feet.
Currently, the devices the scientists have created are not quite as agile as the real thing when flying.
Birds use complex actions to manipulate and contort the profile and direction of their wings to perform sharp aerial manoeuvres, while these drones can only flap their wings up and down to stay in the air – at the moment that is.
Mostafa Hassanalian, Associate Professor at the institute’s department of mechanical engineering, told Soldier the projects were progressing well and more development work is in the pipeline.
“We have been creating these drones for civil applications, including environmental monitoring, search and rescue in hazardous areas, and other research-driven initiatives,” he added.
Real feathers give these devices credible stealth capabilities because they can take off and fly without making the usual buzzing or humming sound of a drone.
The potential they have for quietly sneaking up on targets without alerting them is all too obvious. With that in mind, it’s surely only a matter of time before people in green come knocking at the door.
