GEOMETRIC TRANSFORMATIONS AND FISH SHAPES
This is an attempt to build a computational model of a bird. Currently the work limits itself to basic structure. More work is needed on feather coloration, beak structure and feathering patterns. Feather patterning has already been covered some interesting works by Richard Prum and others.
A proper integration of these may make it possible to produce realistic models that can be used to serve as surrogates for museum specimens and can also be used for developing computer generated technical illustrations for bird identification guides.
GEOMETRIC TRANSFORMATIONS AND FISH SHAPES
GENERATION OF PLANT STRUCTURES USING RECURSION
GENERATION OF SHELL STRUCTURES
GENERATION OF SHELL PATTERNS
GENERATION OF GIRAFFE COAT PATTERNS
STRUCTURAL VARIATIONS IN BIRDS
A large amount of work has been done to computationally model the structure of plants. This essentially involves generating a variety of plant structures using a common model with varying parameters. This approach has also been studied for mollusc shapes and their coloration. Mammalian coat patterns including the spots on various cats, giraffes have been modelled using diffusion based models. The morphology of bacterial colonies have been studied. The behaviour of flocking organisms such as shoals of fish have been modelled. But it did not look list a similar approach had been tried for birds.
To see how a few minor parameter changes can be used to model a range of variations in wing structures, a cartoon model was constructed. These parameters include the angles of the carpal and humeral bones, the lengths and elongation factors for the primaries, secondaries and tail feathers. With this small set of parameter it is surprising that a large number of structural variations corresponding to extant bird forms can be generated. Future work may make it possible to model feather coloration and placement and allow the construction of virtual birds. These could model extant species and thus form virtual bird specimens or field guides with the added advantage that it would be possible to position these birds in a variety of orientations.
RAPTOR WING SHAPES
VULTURE
FEATHERS HAVE SOME GENERAL PATTERNS
GOOSE
CROW
CORMORANT
EAGLE
VULTURE (Square wings, round tail)
KITE (Fork Tail)
LAMMERGEIER (Wedge Tail)
MAGPIE (Graduated Tail)
RAVEN (Wedge Tail)
STORK
STARLING
SWALLOW
TERN
NIGHTJAR
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