Which movements of a flying snake should be mimicked by robots?

After designing robots that move in ways that mimic animal movements like walking and swimming, scientists are now considering how to design robots that mimic the gliding motion exhibited by flying snakes. Researchers from the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech explored the lift production mechanism of flying snakes, which undulate side-to-side as they move from the tops of trees to the ground to escape predators or to move around quickly and efficiently. To help create the same type of pressure differential across its body, the snake undulates side to side, producing a low-pressure region above its back and a high-pressure region beneath its belly. “The snake’s horizontal undulation creates a series of major vortex structures, including leading edge vortices, LEV, and trailing edge vortices, TEV,” Dr. Haibo Dong of the University of Virginia said in a release.