How a Bird's Spread Tail Brakes and Steers Its Flight
Lowering the open tail arrests speed; birds widen their tails to turn and land softly
This text-only page collects observations on the tail in flight. Lowering the opened tail, and using it to direct the breadth of the wings, arrests a bird's swift motion; in every change of straight course birds widen their tails. When descending near the ground, head lower than tail, a bird strongly opens and lowers its tail and beats its wings in small strokes so the head rises and it settles without impact. It adds that many birds, such as jackdaws, raise their wings as fast as they lower them.
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The lowered open tail brakes the flight
Lowering the opened tail and directing with it the breadth of the wings arrests the swift motion of birds. In all changes of a bird's straight course they spread their tails.
Landing without shock
In descent near the earth, with the head lower than the tail, the bird strongly opens and lowers the tail and beats its wings in small strokes; the head then rises higher than the tail, the motion slows, and the bird settles on the ground without any impact. Many birds, such as jackdaws, raise the wings as fast as they lower them.