Birds that fly for 10 months without ever landing!
Q. Which bird flies for 10 months on an end without ever landing?- Published on 01 Nov 16a. Sparrow
b. Robin
c. Partridge
d. Swift
ANSWER: Swift
A small, dark feathered bird called the common swift flies for 10 months on end without ever landing.
- This marks the longest time spent aloft of any known bird.
- The findings reported by scientists confirm the 46 year old hypothesis first offered by British researcher Ron Lockley.
- The research had theorised that the birds spent most of their lives in air.
- Tiny backpacks were fitted on 13 of the brownish black birds, weighing only one gram.
- These micro data logs recorded whether birds were in the air or not, their acceleration and where they had been given at any time.
- When the common swifts leave their breeding site for migration to Central African forests via West Africa, they never touch the ground till they retire for the next breeding season 10 months following this.
- While some birds may roost for brief periods or spend entire nights in mid-winter resting, others never landed during the period.
- For those who did stop, it was done briefly and close to 99.5 percent of the 10 months were spent in air.
The birds catch food while in flight. - They may also sleep when flying to high altitudes form dawn to dusk and slowly descend.
- During the day, energy is saved by gliding in the upward currents of warm air.
- This discovery pushes boundaries for animal physiology.
- A 10 month flight phase is the longest of any bird species and it’s a record.
- Other kinds of birds such as frigate birds are known to sleep while gliding.
