A flapping robot swims and flies like a diving bird

Loons, gulls, puffins, and petrels are some of the 100 species of birds that can both fly and swim. These diving birds can plunge in water to swim after prey, and then leap back into the air to fly away. Now, inspired by these naturally aquatic aviators, engineers at EPFL and MIT have designed a robot that can swim underwater, and flap out of the water to continue flying through air, much like diving birds. The "flapping-wing aerial-aquatic vehicle," or FAAV, weighs less than 300 grams and is designed to help scientists study the mechanics that enable diving birds to fly through air and water. The robot has a central body, or fuselage, two flexible, flapping wings, and a steerable tail.