The Anatomy of a Woodpecker's Shock-Absorbing Skull
In short: Woodpeckers use a specialized hyoid bone and unique cranial morphology to withstand 1000 g of impact, providing a blueprint for human head injury research.
A 1:29 short film in the series “Animal Superpowers”.
Sources used in this film: PLOS ONE, “Why Do Woodpeckers Resist Head Impact Injury: A Biomechanical Investigation”; Springer, “Resist Mechanism of Woodpecker’s Head and Neck Injury”; National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), “Upper beak depression instead of elevation dominates cranial kinesis in woodpeckers”; National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), “Consider the woodpecker: The contested more-than-human ethics of biomimetic technology and traumatic brain injury”.
Sources used in this film
- PLOS ONE — Why Do Woodpeckers Resist Head Impact Injury: A Biomechanical Investigation · View →
- Springer — Resist Mechanism of Woodpecker’s Head and Neck Injury · View →
- National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) — Upper beak depression instead of elevation dominates cranial kinesis in woodpeckers · View →
- National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) — Consider the woodpecker: The contested more-than-human ethics of biomimetic technology and traumatic brain injury · View →
Opens the Intellect+ feed with this card first. Swipe up for the next one.
Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: PLOS ONE: Why Do Woodpeckers Resist Head Impact Injury: A Biomechanical Investigation
- Also: Springer: Resist Mechanism of Woodpecker’s Head and Neck Injury
- Also: National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI): Upper beak depression instead of elevation dominates cranial kinesis in woodpeckers
- Also: National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI): Consider the woodpecker: The contested more-than-human ethics of biomimetic technology and traumatic brain injury
To cite this card, link to https://intellectplus.co.uk/app/the-anatomy-of-a-woodpecker-s-shock-absorbing-skull.
How we source, check and correct cards: Editorial standards.
General information, not professional advice. Spotted an error? Flag the card or see corrections and complaints.
Intellect Plus is a visual educational discovery platform for exploring fascinating facts and ideas. Brain Food, Not Brain Rot. What is Intellect Plus?
Related
More in Nature · Latest · A–Z · All topics
