Fastest Birds
In level flight: The mean estimated speed recorded for a satellite-tagged Grey-headed Albatross (Thalassarche chrysostoma ) is 127 km/h (78.9 mph) sustained for more than eight hours.
A Peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) was recorded rising to a maximum of 350 km/h (217 mph) at 45.
The fastest (flightless) bird on land is the ostrich (Struthio camelus), which can reach 72 km/h (45 mph) when running.
The fastest bird swimmer is the Gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua), which has a burst of speed of about 27 km/h (17 mph).
Strongest Bird of Prey
The female Harpy eagle (Harpia harpyja) regularly kills and carries away animals equal or superior to its 9 kg (20 lb) weight.
Smallest Birds
Male Bee hummingbirds (Mellisuga helenae) of Cuba and the Isle of Youth measure 57mm (2.24 in) in total length, half of which is taken up by the bill and tail, and weight just 1.6g (0.056 oz). Females are slightly larger.
Hummingbirds also have the fastest wing-beat. The Ruby-throated hummingbird (Archilochus colubris) can produce a wing-beat rate of 200 beats per second (bps).
Keenest Smell for a Bird
Few birds have a developed sense of smell, but the Black-footed albatross (Diomedea nigripes) can smell bacon fat poured into the ocean from at least 30 km (18 miles) away.
Hungriest Birds
The world’s hungriest birds are the hummingbirds (family Trochilidae), which have such high metabolic rates that they need to consume at least half of their total body weight in food every day in order to survive. Their food consists mostly of tiny insects and nectar.
Heaviest Birds
The heaviest bird of prey is the Andean condor (Vultur gryphus), males of which average 9-12 kg (20-27 lb) and have a wing-span of 3 m (10ft). The heaviest flying bird is the kori bustard (Ardeotis kori) of south and east Africa; males can reach 18.2 kg (40 lb). The heaviest (and largest) of all birds is the ratite male ostrich (Struthio camelus camelus). It can grow 2.75m (9 ft) tall and may weigh 156.5 kg (345 lb).
Highest Yolk Content
The bird eggs with the highest yolk content to egg volume are those of New Zealand’s kiwis (order Apterygiformes). Some 60 % of a kiwi egg’s volume is taken up by yolk (compared with 31 % of a hen’s egg), and contains so much nutrient that the kiwi chick doew not have to eat for several days after hatching.
Smallest Nest
The nest of the vervain hummingbird (Mellisuga minima) is about half the size of a walnut shell, while the deeper but narrower one of the bee hummingbird (M.helenae) is thimble sized.
Largest Communal Nest
The Sociable weaver (Philetairus socius) of south-western Africa builds a nest that can be up to 8 m (26 ft) long and 2 m (6ft 6 in) high. Resembling a giant haystack that hangs from a tree or telegrph pole, it contains up to 300 individual nests. Not surprisingly, these enormous communal nests can get so heavy that the tree on which they are built sometimes collapses under the weight!
Check out 15 Weird and Amazing Bird Facts Around The World Part Two here:
Stumbled it, Papa. It's too good.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Anuradha.
ReplyDeleteGreat !
ReplyDeleteAnuradha the above facts are very interesting. and nice. Your this article is very knowledgeful. We can improve our knowledge to read it.
great blog terrific animal pictures and info.
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may be useful, Greetings and I wait for a visit behind ya: D
awesome...
ReplyDeletevisiting your site is like an educational tour for me. i always learn something new. :)
ReplyDeleteinteresting papaleng, never heard some of that birds yet.hehehe.Thanks for sharing at nadagdan naman knowledge ko.lol
ReplyDeleteI don't think my daughter will need a wiki for this if she needs to write something about birds in her class report. You have it here already ;)
ReplyDeletevery interesting, didn't seen some of the birds here in reality though, but would love to see one that's moving..thank you for sharing...
ReplyDeleteThese are very marvelous bird! I love the smallest one. It so cute. Thank you, Papaleng, this is really informative. :-)
ReplyDeleteMy daughter loves animals and even watches Discovery Planet and Nat Geo - she would love this.
ReplyDeleteThey look cute and very interesting. I like the 1st one it looks so serious though.
ReplyDeleteEverything in this post is interesting especially the sociable weaver. I can't believe they can make a big nest as what you have describe.
ReplyDeleteBTW, we went to Calgary early this month, and it's my first time to see a penguin (in real life). They walk so cute.
I love the smallest bird! It looks so cuteee! Bawat dalaw ko dito Papaleng feeling ko ang tali-talino ko, LOL! Thanks for the interesting information.
ReplyDeletei love hummingbirds, and love to learn more facts about them, did not know they are the hungriest birds :)
ReplyDeletereally weird in a good way...I caught a hummingbird before...they're so fragile.
ReplyDeleteinformative as always. we just came from a zoo yesterday and enjoyed seeing birds, my kids love the bird show too, birds are smart in their own way. :) have a great week. :)
ReplyDeleteThey looks interesting kind of birds...Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThose were amazing birds! Thanks for sharing different kinds of them :)
ReplyDeleteyou got some great bird shots here...thanks for sharing..
ReplyDeletewow those are really amazing birds! thanks for sharing all the infos about them. i am fascinated at the owl and the smallest bird. so cute!
ReplyDeleteSome birds illustrated above are new to me. Thanks for sharing this paps! :)
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