Peregrines

[Andrew Taylor <>]

On Wed, Jun 18, 2008 at 02:30:50PM +1000, Evan Beaver wrote:
> Did the falcon fly under it's own power to 10,000 feet? If not, I
> suggest that a Yellowfin tuna, or something similarly dense and
> aerodynamic would flog the record.

A falcon should get close to maximum velocity with a 1200m dive and
wild birds make stoops of this magnitude.  In natural situations
they may always choose to limit their velocity but establishing their
capabilities with artificial experiments is interesting if different,
but I would treat numbers reported only in a TV doco with caution.
You may find skydiving tuna's velocity a disappointment if they fail to
adopt a aerodynamic posture.

Andrew