KCT Thought of the Week, April 10, 2015

Life Lessons from Geese
By Milton Olson

1. As each goose flaps its wings it creates an "uplift" for the birds that follow. By flying in this "V-formation", the whole flock adds 72% greater flying range than if each bird flew alone.
2. When a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of flying alone. It quickly moves back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird in front.
3. When the lead goose gets tired, it rotates back in the formation and another goose flies point.
4. The geese honk from behind to encourage those up-front to keep up their speed.
5. When a goose gets sick or is wounded or falls out, two geese fall out of formation and follow it down to help and protect it. They stay with it until it is either able to fly or until it is dead, and then they launch out on their own or with another formation to catch up with their group. 
6. Geese fly South for the winter in the Northern Hemisphere.
7. Geese mate for life. A goose must have companionship.

We Could Learn a Lot from Geese: Photo by David Jourdan