The Omen Archive

Some Avian Arithmetic

Could the vulture catch the pigeon, given:

1. The pigeon’s speed is 60 mph
2. The vulture’s speed is 60 ft per round = 6.82 mph
3. The pigeon must rest for 8 hours a day, and the vulture doesn’t need to rest
4. The pigeon was freshly rested when it left
5. Head/tail winds are negligible

Per day, the pigeon would travel 960 miles in 16 hours, plus 8 hours of rest. The vulture would travel 163.68 miles in 24 hours. The vulture would never catch the pigeon. In order for the vulture to catch the pigeon at all, the pigeon would need to fly less than 2.728 hours per day.