How woodpeckers can continuously strike tree trunks with their beaks without harming their brains has long been a mystery to scientists.
This made people think that their heads must be like helmets that protect them from shocks. Today, researchers debunked this theory in the journal Current Biology by showing that their brains function more like rigid hammers.
In fact, their analysis shows that any cushioning would make it harder for the woodpeckers to peck.
“By analyzing high-speed videos of three species of woodpeckers,” explains Sam Van Wassenbergh (@UAFunMorph) of Universiteit Antwerpen in Belgium, “we found that woodpeckers do not absorb the shock of the impact with the tree.”
First, Van Wassenbergh and coworkers calculated the effects of pecking decelerations in three different woodpecker species.
They built biomechanical models using the data and came to the conclusion that any shock absorption in the skull would be harmful to the birds.
But, if their skulls don’t act as shock absorbers, could their ferocious pecking endanger their brains?
The fact is that it doesn’t. The deceleration stress associated with each peck exceeds the accepted threshold for concussion in humans and primates, yet the smaller brains of woodpeckers can withstand it.
According to Van Wassenbergh, woodpeckers are capable of making mistakes, such as when they peck metal with all of their might.
But even without the protection of their skulls acting as protective helmets, their normal pecking on tree trunks is typically considerably below the threshold to produce a concussion.
According to Van Wassenbergh, “the absence of shock absorption does not mean their brains are in danger during the seemingly violent impacts. Even the strongest shocks from the over 100 pecks that were analyzed should still be safe for the woodpeckers’ brains as our calculations showed brain loadings that are lower than that of humans suffering a concussion.”
According to Van Wassenbergh, the results disprove the long-held hypothesis of shock absorption, which has gained popularity in the media, literature, zoos, and other places.
He claims that when documenting woodpeckers in zoos, he overheard parents telling their children that woodpeckers don’t get headaches because their heads have shock absorbers built in.
Our findings now dispel the misconception that woodpeckers absorb trauma.
He claims that the data may provide an evolutionary explanation for why there aren’t woodpeckers with significantly larger heads and neck muscles.
A larger woodpecker might be able to give more powerful pecks, but the woodpecker would presumably suffer greatly from concussions.
Considering that engineers have previously drawn inspiration from the structure of the woodpecker’s skull skeleton for the creation of shock-absorbing materials and helmets, the discoveries also have some practical implications, he continues.
The latest research indicates it’s not a good idea, given that the anatomy of woodpeckers reduces shock absorption.
Another recent study by Van Wassenbergh’s team found that woodpecker beaks frequently become stuck, but the birds swiftly remove themselves by the alternating movement of the upper and bottom parts of their beaks.
They are now investigating how the form of the beak is suited for pecking.
Image Credit: Getty
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