Bird flight has been studied for some time now using Doppler guns and scientists have tried to estimate how fasts do birds fly and have tried to see if it has any relation to bird size.
based on research, scientists have found out the following:
- In general, there is little correlation between the size of bird and the flight speed it is capable of. Humming birds and geese both are capable of the same maximum flight speeds.
- Most birds fly in the range of 30-50 Km /hr.
- There is usually a huge difference between how fast can fly and the speed at which they normally fly.
- There is a huge difference between normal flight & when pursued by raptors.
- It also appears that birds fly faster when assisted by wind.
- The fastest migratory bird: The great snipe which covers 6,760 km non-stop journey at 97 Km/hr
- The fastest level flying bird: The spine tailed swift at 171 Km/hr
- The fastest gravity assisted flight: The peregrine falcon which can dive at speeds close to 320 Km/hr
By the way, the Guinness Book of World Records started as a result of an argument about the fastest game bird in Europe. In 1951, Sir Hugh Beaver, the managing director of Guinness Breweries, was in south-eastern Ireland with a group of friends, enjoying a day’s shooting. Failing to shoot a golden plover, Sir Hugh maintained that this must be the world’s fastest flying game bird. His companions disagreed. Sir Hugh used his own fortune to research the question, and that’s how the Guinness Book of World records got started.
Reference:
- http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/How_Fast.html
- http://www.thetravelalmanac.com/lists/birds-speed.htm
- http://earthsky.org/earth/fastest-bird
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| The great snipe |
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| Spine-tailed swift |
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| Peregrine falcon |
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