Over 30 Chinese military and government agencies have been using robotic bird drones to spy on the population – particularly in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region which borders several countries and has a large Muslim population, reports the South China Morning Post.

One part of the country that has seen the new technology used extensively is the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region in China’s far west. The vast area, which borders Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, is home to a large Muslim population and has long been viewed by Beijing as a hotbed for separatism. As a result, the region and its people have been subjected to heavy surveillance from the central government. –SCMP

Unlike traditional unmanned aerial vehicles with rotor blades or fixed wings, the bird drones actually mimic the flapping action of a bird’s wings in order to climb, dive and steer.

The machines in China’s current robot flock replicate about 90 per cent of the movements of a real dove, the person said, adding that they also produce very little noise, making them very hard to detect from the ground, and are so lifelike that actual birds often fly alongside them. –SCMP

Each “bird” is fitted with a HD camera, GPS antenna, flight control system and data link with the capability to communicate with satellites. The flapping mechanism consists of a pair of crank rockers connected to an electric motor, while the wings are able to slightly deform when moving up and down – providing both lift and thrust.

The “spy bird” program, code-named project “Dove” is led by Northwestern Polytechnic University professor Song Bifeng – a former scientist on China’s J-20 stealth jet program decorated for his service to the People’s Liberation Army, according to information on the university’s website.

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