Lord of the Rings’ Eagle Problem SOLVED | Summary and Q&A

TL;DR

The question of why the giant eagles in Lord of the Rings didn't fly the Fellowship to Mordor is answered using science and biology.

Key Insights

• 🦶 Torendor, the largest eagle in the Lord of the Rings books, has a wingspan of almost 200 feet and a mass of 29,000 kilograms.
• 💆 Biological scaling suggests that as an organism's mass increases, other aspects of its body change proportionately.
• ✊ Flight muscle power and metabolic limitations make it physically impossible for such massive birds to carry humanoids for long distances.
• 🦅 The eagles' ability to carry humans in the books is inconsistent and unreliable, suggesting it is more of a plot device than scientifically accurate.
• 🦅 Even if the eagles could have carried the Fellowship, they would have been slow, unmaneuverable, and easy targets for the Nazgul.
• 👊 Real-life eagles do not pick up and carry their prey; instead, they throw their prey off cliffs or attack smaller prey that they can lift.
• ❓ The physical abilities of fictional characters in a fantasy story should not be subjected to strict scientific scrutiny.

Transcript

hey Arya what's going on outside it looks like there's a bunch of rockets nerds on the internet are not happy about the new Lord of the Rings show oh boy looks like it's getting pretty toxic out there huh yeah I don't think it could get any worse nonsense why didn't the eagles just fly the fellowship to Mordor this is the annoyingly articulated ner... Read More

Questions & Answers

Q: Why didn't the eagles just fly the Fellowship to Mordor?

The massive size and weight of the Eagles, as well as the limitations of flight muscle power and metabolism, would make it physically impossible for them to carry the Fellowship for long distances.

Q: Could scaled-up eagles actually carry humanoids a significant distance?

The largest eagle in Tolkien's writings, Torendor, would weigh almost 30 tons, a mass that far exceeds any known flying creature on Earth.

Q: What is biological scaling?

Biological scaling is the study of how an organism's mass affects other aspects of its body, and it suggests that as mass increases, certain traits also change proportionately.

Q: What do we know about flight muscles and power in birds?

Flight in birds is metabolically expensive, requiring significant muscle power. Hummingbirds, for example, need to constantly flap their wings due to their high metabolic demands.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The largest eagle in J.R.R. Tolkien's writings, Torendor, has a wingspan of almost 200 feet and a mass of 29,000 kilograms.

• Biological scaling suggests that as an organism's mass increases, other aspects of its body change proportionately.

• Flight muscle power and metabolic limitations make it physically impossible for such massive birds to carry humanoids for long distances.