It has been great fun to write this book, even though it has taken
longer than planned, and occasionally been exasperating. The most
difficult problem was deciding what to exclude among so many interesting
things, because the available material usually exceeded the space.
Because a book like this covers so many aspects, each component must be
limited. This book is intended for graduate and undergraduate students
as well as professional scientists who want to work with animal flight
or to gain some insight into flight mechanics, aerodynamics, energetics,
physiology, morpho- logy, ecology and evolution. My aim has not been to
give the whole mathe- matical explanation of flight, but to provide an
outline and summary of the main theories for the understanding of how
aerofoils respond to an airflow. I also hope to give the reader some
insight into how flight morphology and the various wing shapes have
evolved and are adapted to different ecological niches and habitats.