Most accomplished flyer in the world... (1 Viewer)

The other night during a documentary David Attenborough said something along the lines of 'Hummingbirds can lay claim to being the most accomplished flyers in the world'.

It was an unbelievable programme (UK TV, Hummingbirds - jewelled messengers) but a few weeks on and I still don't know whether I agree or not. Do you?

If Hummingbirds aren't the most accomplished flyers in the bird world, what bird is? Peregrine, albatross a couple of contenders IMO.

Show me a Peregrine or an albatross that can hover and fly backwards!

The real question is: which hummingbird is the most accomplished flyer in the world?

A quick look at the definition of 'most accomplished' seems to indicate that it something to do with being proficient as a result of practise or training. So I'd imagine Hummingbirds aren't the most accomplished ... (more a case of instinct? Plus they don't live that long, so number of flying hours can't be that high (although conversely, I guess number of wingbeats might swing it?))

Which starts out the worst, learns the most and becomes really good? Peregrine? Sparrowhawk? Johnathan Livingstone Seagull? Swifts must be up there?

Swifts are indeed up there, saw loads today.

So... Probably some raptor that spends a lot of time jumping up and down in its nest before it even tries to venture out.
Albatrosses never quite learn how to land graciously (except maybe Sooty which also has a penchant for synchronised flying).

I looked up 'accomplished' before posting but should probably clarify. Accomplished can include training/practice but also skill. Wrongly (!) I had assumed a focus on the skill bit would be obvious! My question is not about training or practice or dedication. It is about a bird amazing us humans when in flight, so is down to personal opinion.

So I suppose the word accomplished could be replaced with 'skilled and able'. Or maybe 'impressive'... Anyway, I think you get the picture.

Xenospiza, show me a hummingbird that can fly over 200 mph (or fall and keep balance)... Show me a hummingbird that can fly for thousands of miles over the ocean or fly in the middle of a raging gale?!

George London said:

Xenospiza, show me a hummingbird that can fly over 200 mph (or fall and keep balance)...

Click to expand...

Well they are tiny, so we have to see things in perspective.

Quote: "Diving male Anna's hummingbirds were filmed with a combination of high-speed and conventional video cameras. After powering the initial stage of the dive by flapping, males folded their wings by their sides, at which point they reached an average maximum velocity of 385 body lengths/s (27.3 m/s). This is the highest known length-specific velocity attained by any vertebrate."

Even more remarkably, at the lowest point they make a sound with their tail.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_2JFK-tnnE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wO3sXEky4WE

I think "skilled and able or maybe impressive" would mean some bird that makes skillful aerial acrobatics, like ravens/choughs or some raptors that exchange a prey item midflight.

Xenospiza said:

Quote: "Diving male Anna's hummingbirds .....they reached an average maximum velocity of 385 body lengths/s (27.3 m/s). This is the highest known length-specific velocity attained by any vertebrate."

Click to expand...

Impressive! c.61mph.
I'm sure someone can calculate the equivalent speed for a Peregrine...?

I wonder what invertebrate speeds are like in comparison?

halftwo said:

Impressive! c.61mph.
I'm sure someone can calculate the equivalent speed for a Peregrine...?

Click to expand...

Actually I have! c.1,00mph!

Ah, the intricacies of the English language, and the difference between a dictionary definition and the vernacular. Common Swift don't 'land' on anything from the time they leave the nest until they return to breed, even mating and sleeping in flight ( but as a lot of the time they're gliding does that count as 'flight'?). The largest Albatrosses have been recorded circumnavigating the globe to get back to feed their young, yet again there's a lot of gliding involved, and its at the small end. Arctic Tern travel between the Arctic and Antarctic annually for at least 30+ years, that's something to marvel at. The agility of a Sparrowhawk chasing prey through thick woodland, and the ability of some prey to evade them, is fantastic. The massed arial manouvers of flocks of Red Knot, Dunlin or Starling have to be in the frame as well. As for the ability of Hummingbirds to hover - lots of birds can do that and fly backwards - Tropicbirds do that in display, Hummers do do it better plus Rubythroats cross the Gulf of Mexico, something that common sense says they are physically incapable of doing considering the energy expended in such a nonstop flight. I think it's best to say all birds are 'accomplished' - except for things like Hoatzin, Kakapo, Snowcocks and a few more.

Chris