How do geese fly over the Himalayas?

Every winter, geese begin their seasonal journey from India to Central Asia, where they are forced to fly over the towering Himalayas, which are no less than seven thousand meters above sea level, in addition to the long distances they cover. What is the secret behind geese’s ability to fly to this height?

As is well known, the air density at this height is much lower than at a similar height above sea level, which forces flocks of geese to make do with half the amount of oxygen they inhale under normal conditions. But snow geese, fortunately, can do this without any problems.

To find out how geese deal with these harsh environmental conditions, experts from the University of Exeter in the United States conducted a study in which they subjected these birds to exercise by placing them inside a transparent plastic cage on top of a treadmill used by athletes. The geese ran on the machine in their own way. The results showed that these birds were able to maintain the same running pace for 15 full minutes without getting tired, which is something that even professional mountain climbers usually cannot do, says Leckie Hawkes of the research team.
It is known that muscles need oxygen to perform their functions. Oxygen is transported through the vasculature inside red blood cells to the tissues, then to the mitochondria, or what is known as the cell nucleus, which converts it into energy. The advantage of snow geese is that they have a greater number of blood vessels inside the muscles than other types of birds or mammals.
Source: www.aljazeera.net