“Alula”- Why the Name?
We love birds! A few years back we stumbled onto the word “alula” while looking for inspiration through a book
on bird anatomy. Officially pronounced “al-you-la” in the bird world, we like the sound of “ah-loo-la” when
referring to our glider.
Upon researching further, we learned that the “alula” on a bird wing (see figure below) is a set of feathers
attached to the bird’s equivalent of a thumb. These “thumb feathers” on a bird serve as a quasi leading edge
slotted flap that helps to delay the onset of a stall. It works by maintaining the airflow over the top of the wing
at high angles of attack. This serves the bird well during take-off, landing, and perching in difficult locations.
Simply put, we found the name fitting due to the low speed performance of this little glider and its bird-like
appearance. Given that many of us use our thumbs to control our RC aircraft, this little glider provides us with
some “thumb feathers” of our own.
al·u·la
New Latin origin, meaning
a little wing.
The group of three to six small, rather
stiff feathers
growing on the first digit, or thumb
of a bird's wing.
An evolutionary adaptation which
delays the onset of
stall by reinvigorating wing airflow.
A Red-tailed Hawk prepares for landing
with Alulae (pl.) in full effect.