Birds, the only permanent bipeds in the animal kingdom, maintain their balance using a mysterious mechanism called tensegrity, a combination of tension and compression. Researchers at the National Museum of Natural History and the CNRS discovered that birds can sleep while standing, due to their structure similar to human legs. By studying the feet of birds like the mandarin diamondbird, scientists created a digital model with cables to mimic their balance. Calcified tendons play a crucial role in stabilizing birds, allowing them to sleep without falling. This passive system inspired applications in robotics and civil engineering, proving that nature’s design can solve complex problems efficiently and effortlessly.
https://news.cnrs.fr/articles/why-birds-do-not-fall-while-sleeping