Why do woodpeckers resist head impact injury:​ a biomechanical investigation

Wang, Lizhen<sup>1,2</sup>; Cheung, Jason Tak-Man<sup>3</sup>; Pu, Fang<sup>1</sup>; Li, Deyu<sup>1</sup>; Zhang, Ming<sup>2</sup>; Fan, Yubo<sup>1</sup>

Affiliations

¹Key Laboratory for Biomechanics and Mechanobiology of Ministry of Education, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, People's Republic of China

²Department of Health Technology and Informatics, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong

³Li Ning Sports Science Research Center, Beijing, People's Republic of China

Abstract

Head injury is a leading cause of morbidity and death in both industrialized and developing countries. It is estimated that brain injuries account for 15% of the burden of fatalities and disabilities, and represent the leading cause of death in young adults. Brain injury may be caused by an impact or a sudden change in the linear and/or angular velocity of the head. However, the woodpecker does not experience any head injury at the high speed of 6–7 m/s with a deceleration of 1000 g when it drums a tree trunk. It is still not known how woodpeckers protect their brain from impact injury. In order to investigate this, two synchronous high-speed video systems were used to observe the pecking process, and the force sensor was used to measure the peck force. The mechanical properties and macro/micro morphological structure in woodpecker's head were investigated using a mechanical testing system and micro-CT scanning. Finite element (FE) models of the woodpecker's head were established to study the dynamic intracranial responses. The result showed that macro/micro morphology of cranial bone and beak can be recognized as a major contributor to non-impact-injuries. This biomechanical analysis makes it possible to visualize events during woodpecker pecking and may inspire new approaches to prevention and treatment of human head injury.

Links

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0026490

PubMed: 22046293

PubMedCentral: 22046293

WoS: 000296519600022

Cited Works (18)

Year	Entry
1971	Ommaya AK, Hirsch AE. Tolerances for cerebral concussion from head impact and whiplash in primates. J Biomech. 1971;4(1):13-21.
1996	Lanyon LE. Using functional loading to influence bone mass and architecture: objectives, mechanisms, and relationship with estrogen of the mechanically adaptive process in bone. Bone. January 1996;18(1)(suppl):37S-43S.
1943	Holbourn AHS. Mechanics of head injuries. Lancet. October 9, 1943;242(6267):438-441.
1999	Kabel J, van Rietbergen B, Odgaard A, Huiskes R. Constitutive relationships of fabric, density, and elastic properties in cancellous bone architecture. Bone. October 1999;25(4):481-486.
1977	Carter DR, Hayes WC. The compressive behavior of bone as a two-phase porous structure. J Bone Joint Surg. 1977;59A(7):954-962.
2006	Yang KH, Hu J, White NA, King AI, Chou CC, Prasad P. Development of numerical models for injury biomechanics research: a review of 50 years of publications in the Stapp Car Crash Conference. Stapp Car Crash J. 2006;50:429-490. SAE 2006-22-0017.
2003	King AI, Yang KH, Zhang L, Hardy W, Viano DC. Is head injury caused by linear or angular acceleration? In: Proceedings of the 2003 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 25, 2003; Lisbon, Portugal.1-12.
1987	Roesler H. The history of some fundamental concepts in bone biomechanics. J Biomech. 1987;20(11-12):1025-1034.
2002	Kleiven S, von Holst H. Consequences of head size following trauma to the human head. J Biomech. 2002;35(2):153-160.
1988	Linde F, Gøthgen CB, Hvid I, Pongsoipetch B, Bentzen S. Mechanical properties of trabecular bone by a non‐destructive compression testing approach. Eng Med. 1988;17(1):23-29.
1988	Rice JC, Cowin SC, Bowman JA. On the dependence of the elasticity and strength of cancellous bone on apparent density. J Biomech. 1988;21(2):155-168.
1999	Thurman DJ, Alverson C, Dunn KA, Guerrero J, Sniezek JE. Traumatic brain injury in the United States: a public health perspective. J Head Trauma Rehabil. December 1999;14(6):602-615.
1987	Carter DR, Fyhrie DP, Whalen RT. Trabecular bone density and loading history: regulation of connective tissue biology by mechanical energy. J Biomech. 1987;20(8):785-794.
2004	Zhang L, Yang KH, King AI. A proposed injury threshold for mild traumatic brain injury. J Biomech Eng. 2004;126(2):226-236.
1969	Stalnaker RL. Mechanical Properties of the Head [PhD thesis]. Morgantown, WV: West Virginia University; 1969.
1989	Lee M-C, Haut RC. Insensitivity of tensile failure properties of human bridging veins to strain rate: implications in biomechanics of subdural hematoma. J Biomech. 1989;22(6-7):537-542.
1986	Cowin SC. Wolff’s law of trabecular architecture at remodeling equilibrium. J Biomech Eng. February 1986;108(1):83-88.
1994	Ruan JS. Impact Biomechanics of Head Injury by Mathematical Modeling [PhD thesis]. Detroit, MI: Wayne State University; 1994.

Cited By (5)

Year	Entry
2012	Zhu ZD, Ma GJ, Wu CW, Chen Z. Numerical study of the impact response of woodpecker’s head. AIP Adv. 2012;2(4):042173.
2023	Wheatley BB, Gilmore EC, Fuller LH, Drake AM, Donahue SW. How the geometry and mechanics of bighorn sheep horns mitigate the effects of impact and reduce the head injury criterion. Bioinspir Biomim. February 2023;18(2):026005.
2015	Drake AM. Dynamic Structural Analysis of Ramming in Bighorn Sheep [Master's thesis]. Colorado State University; F 2015.
2016	Lee NY. Experimental-Computational Analysis of Woodpeckers' Beaks/hyoid Apparatus for Damping of Stress Waves [PhD thesis]. Mississippi State University; August 2016.
2019	Jung J-Y. Learning from Nature: An Investigation of an Impact-Resistant System on the Woodpecker Head as a Non-Traumatic Brain Injury Animal Model [PhD thesis]. San Siego, CA: University of California San Diego; 2019.