Bird flight patterns

 

Looking at general flight patterns of birds and then observing how the type of bird will effect it's methods of flight and how it's wing span and shape is designed for certain effects. E.g. Seagulls have a wide wing span to allow them to glide long distances with minimal wing movement, whereas the Robin  flies short distances but has to take off and land quickly as to avoid being preyed upon.

Research videos

Silly music aside, I found these videos useful for my research into animal walk cycles and wing motion.

Web reference

I found an excellent website with video footage of various actions for animators to refer to - most importantly I found an entire section devoted to the motion of animals.    http://www.referencereference.com/