There was a lot or rumor about the Festo Smartbird in the last weeks. They actually built a nice bird, mainly by simulating and trial and error (see the movie posted lately Video).

Now scientist go to the roots, letting an owl fly through a bunch of cameras measuring the movement.

"It's not as though we are going to apply these results to an A380 – its flight characteristics bear no resemblance to those of an owl. But the research results can be applied to smaller, unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs,"

Here is the full article: The secret of efficient bird flight

It will probably take some time till they get results (also depending on the owls :-), but good to see there is progress!