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How Hummingbirds Hum: Oscillating Aerodynamic Forces Explain Timbre of the Humming Sound

The source of the hummingbirds distinctive hum is not well understood, but there are clues to its origin in the acoustic nearfield and farfield. To unravel this mystery, we recorded the acoustic nearfield generated by six freely hovering Annas hummingbirds using a 2176 microphone array. We also directly measured the 3D aerodynamic forces generated by the hummingbird in vivo using a new aerodynamic force platform. To determine the degree to which the aerodynamic forces cause the hum, we developed a simple first-principles model to predict the acoustic field radiated by the 3D oscillating forces. The correspondence between the predicted and measured acoustic field shows the primary acoustic sources of the hum are the lift and drag forces that oscillate as the flapping wings move back and forth. The model also shows how the aerodynamic force profile of the flapping wing determines the hums timbre and sound pressure level: profiles that support bodyweight with higher harmonics radiate more acoustic power. Further, extending this model across birds and flying insects, we show how the radiated acoustic power scales with body mass to the second power - with allometric deviation making larger birds quieter and elongated flies louder. The model's ability to predict the acoustic signature of flapping wings suggests it can be applied for such diverse uses as differentiating wing and feather sounds in bird display behaviors to interpreting how insects generate courtship songs with their wings to making flapping robot wings more silent.