3D Modeling The Smallest Birds in the World

Burke Ornithology Collections Manager Kevin Epperly manages over 100,000 bird specimens and — in the rare moments of free time — has picked up both 3D photogrammetry and 3D printing.

“He is an artist,” Burke Curator of Ornithology Dr. Alejo Rico-Guevara explained as he shared a 3D printed hummingbird head that effectively mimicked the iridescent feathers of a real hummingbird.

Epperly uses these skills to assist Rico-Guevara in his research on the beaks of nectar drinking-birds (mostly hummingbirds). To get the accuracy they need, they have developed a system called PicoCam, which will be published soon.

The 3D models allow researchers to observe features of the beaks without damaging real specimens. They can even load the models into stress test software to see how different beak shapes may affect their strength in combat.

This video features clips from Dr. Alejo Rico-Guevara and YouTube Channel: Nature Shared. Music is Arrival of Birds recorded by The Cinematic Orchestra.

[FreestylePadawan]

the hawk looked like a tired big brother needing to deal with his anoying little brother lol

[paOli]

Love the clip at the end to verify the viewer’s disbelief 🙌🏽 lol

[PaletaLee]

Little bird: "FEAR MEEE AAAWW GRRRR"
Hawk: "oh youre cute, but im not hungry thanks"

[America]

Can confirm. We had hummingbirds in our backyard which would squeak and fly around us angrily without fear. Extremely territorial and also extremely cute

[burkemuseum]

Were these hummingbirds killed for this project?

No! These hummingbirds died from natural causes (window strikes are the most common) and were donated to the museum by folks who found them. That is how the vast majority of bird specimens are acquired in modern times, although killing birds for science was standard practice decades ago and it does still happen for species that can't be studied any other way.

[Oscaru]

nooo they are so cute 😭
seeing them angry and territorial just makes them cuter 🥺

[cody]

Those red tailed hawks may be big and strong, but those hummingbirds are quick💪🏻

[cdk]

I have hummingbirds who frequently visit my yard. After watching them over the years, I learned that they are very territorial over their favorite feeders! Not only that, they are very aggressive and fight in mid air whild make the all kinds of noise. ❤

[ceres]

Perfect music choice! “Arrival of the Birds” from the documentary “The Crimson Wing “ will stick with me forever.

[OscarRodriguez-zetd]

bro didn't evolve for food he evolved for dominance

[justaperson]

That taxidermy hummingbird is gorgeous, the patterning is incredible

[Irishrebel]

They're the Chihuahuas of the bird world

[thebrotacogamer]

Now, I've been pretty fortunate to have hummingbirds make nests in our backyard, and be rather cool with us looking in there as the eggs eventually hatch and the babies grow up. They wait patiently for the feeders to be put out, and observe me pretty often. They aren't too happy about the scrub jays or mocking birds also taking up residence relatively close, but they are in entirely seperate trees, and the hummingbirds like the smaller, thinner trees that the other birds simply can't use. Our dogs like to be under those trees too and I bet the other birds don't like to get too close for that reason, but it doesn't seem to bother the little humming birds too much. They have plenty of different flowers in additon to the feeders to choose from, and lots of spiders in the area too, I've seen webs get picked apart during the nest building months.

I love the little critters, and I'll never stop doing what I can to care for them. Even if it sounds like they are being very impatient sometimes.

[fryingpanda]

That's really sweet that the bird stayed so still to not interrupt the 3d scanning process 🥰

[dyscea]

Red-tailed Hawk: "So you hear a mosquito?"

[pauraque]

That bird at the end is actually a Cooper's Hawk! You can tell by the much longer tail and slimmer body shape. In fact, a real Red-tailed Hawk is much larger making this whole thing way more impressive.

[n.a.]

In Aztec/Nahua culture, the name for hummingbird is also the same name for the great god of war, the sun, and, Huitzilopochtli. From the way they fly, to their territorial behavior, and their beaks that can be swords, I have a lot of respect for these birds.

[lordfarquaad]

“arrival of the birds” by the cinematic orchestra was the perfect song choice for this short 😊

[jesusmejia]

Lmao that last bit 😂
I love humming birds❤

[stephenbrand]

Hummingbirds truly are the avian treasures of the Americas!!!