Butterflies have more flight-control capability than the most advanced fighter jet, said zoologist Adrian Thomas. They have "brains as small as the head of a pin, but there's still a lot we can learn from them," he said.

Adrian Thomas and Robert Srygley's study was printed in the scientific journal Nature, and was covered in the Dec. 23, 2002, U.S. News and World Report, which said the researchers videotaped red admiral butterflies in a wind tunnel. The butterflies were using "every aerodynamic mechanism we had previously thought of, and two more besides," said Adrian Thomas.

For example, the butterflies were seen doing "a sort of double-time flap that sets up a pair of tiny tornadoes above each wing, generating up to 3 Gs of acceleration," U.S. News reported.

These small wonders are another example of the awesome design of our great Creator!