Here's a really fun fact I learnt today that involves squirrels.
Now, I couldn't find an actual case study verifying the math and I guess it's better this way 😂
So, it turns out that, at least in theory, squirrels are immune to death from falling off, regardless of heights. This is thanks to their body shape.
This combined with their natural instinct and fluffy hair results in a terminal velocity that is low enough to pretty much guarantee their survival. In simple terms, terminal velocity is the max speed that can be achieved during a fall, so it really doesn't matter if our hypothetical squirrel falls from a really tall tree, a skyscraper or even a plane. Well, ok, if the plane is high enough extreme temperatures and/or lack of oxygen may be fatal but that's not the point.
Terminal velocity is the maximum velocity (speed) attainable by an object as it falls through a fluid (air is the most common example). It occurs when the sum of the drag force (Fd) and the buoyancy is equal to the downward force of gravity (FG) acting on the object. via Wikipedia
Anyways, here are the math I found on a website, assuming we have a squirrel that weighs 330 g with and has an under surface of 500 cm2:
That's a terminal velocity of 10 metres per second, achieved in about 3 seconds after the fall starts. Now that's fast.. but chances are a squirrel would survive this, perhaps with some damage.
Disclaimer: Results may vary depending on species. Please don't try this at home 😂
For comparison, the human body has a terminal velocity that is over 5 times that, at about 53.6 metres per second.
...
....
.....
And let's not forget gliding squirrels!
These fuckers can definitely survive falling off from any height 😂😂
Ok friends, hope you enjoyed this piece of useless yet fun information.