The speed of animals on the ground depends on strong legs and a powerful skeleton. The speed of birds in the sky depends on other factors. The greatest speed is developed not by those birds that have the strongest wings, but those that know how to use them correctly.
Who is the fastest in the sky?
The championship of calling itself the fastest in the sky is divided between two species of birds. The fastest bird at its peak is the peregrine falcon, a representative of the falcon family. Having outlined a victim, he "falls" on it from a great height, knocking him down with a blow of powerful paws. With such a blow, prey can fly to pieces. The dive speed can reach 389 km / h. This can be compared to the speed of some aircraft. Most often, peregrine falcons hunt birds: sparrows, thrushes, pigeons, ducks, less often small animals: hares, squirrels, bats, amphibians.
In the speed of flight in a horizontal position, the peregrine falcon is much inferior to the swift. The needle-tailed swift is a small bird, reaching a length of 16-18 cm, weighing 30-56 grams and capable of speeds up to 169 km / h. The high flight speed allows the swifts to escape from the pursuit of predatory brethren without any problems.
To argue with a swift in speed is within the power of a hobby. This bird of the falcon family is capable of speeds up to 160 km / h. Such speed helps the hobby to hunt insects and small birds.
The frigate, which develops a speed of up to 153 km / h in horizontal flight, is slightly behind the hobby. These birds are able to soar over water bodies for a long time without flapping their wings and saving their strength. Most often, frigates attack other birds of prey, taking their prey from them.
The gray-headed albatross is not far behind the frigate. It has huge wings, the span of which is 3.5 m. This makes it possible to develop a flight speed of up to 130 km / h and to guard it for a long time. For most of the day, albatrosses hover over the vastness of the ocean in search of fish, crustaceans, squid, and carrion.
Slightly inferior to albatross eiders. Their average flight speed is about 100 km / h. They, like albatrosses, spend a lot of time above the water, hunting crustaceans, aquatic invertebrates, or simply collecting molluscs. With the help of their powerful wings, eiders can dive to a depth of 20 m, collecting food from the bottom.
Carrier pigeons are also famous for their speed. They can spend up to 16 hours a day in the sky without interruption, and their flight speed reaches 85-100 km / h.
What makes birds fly so fast?
Flight speed depends on many factors. The flight characteristics are directly related to the weight of the bird: the less the body weight, the easier it is to rise into the air. Fast flight requires short, pointed wings that will provide a high flap rate for the fastest possible speed. The tail during flight serves as a rudder and helps to maneuver the body in the air. Helps to be fast in the sky and build the skeleton of birds. Many of their bones are hollow.
