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18. The
larger the bird, the more likely it is to live longer.
The large wandering albatross, for example, can live for
up to 80 years.
19. Birds don’t fall off of
a branch when they sleep because their toes
automatically clench around the twig they are standing
on. Because the grabbing action is done by tendons
rather than muscles, the birds can sleep without
danger of falling.
20.
The longest feathers ever seen were on a chicken in
Japan. Its tail feathers measured 34.7 feet (10.59 m)
long.
21. Not all birds have
equally hollow bones. Those that dive into water—like
gannets, terns, and kingfishers—and those that fly very
fast, like swifts, have less air in their long bones
than other birds.
22. The linear flight
formations of migratory birds are called echelons, with
the most common shapes being the “V” or the “J.” In
fact, a true V-shaped formation is less common than a J
formation. Birds fly in formation a) because it saves
energy and b) to facilitate orientation and
communication among the birds.
23. The word "parakeet"
literally means "long tail."
24. What keeps a bird up in
the air is the shape of its wings. The first humans to
discover how birds stay aloft were Australian Aborigines
when they invented the boomerang.
25. Birds sense winter is
coming by 1) changes in hormones that cause them to put
on fat, 2) the changing length of the day, and 3)
sensing small changes in air pressure, which is
important in predicting weather changes.
26. Gentoo Penguins are
the fastest swimming birds, reaching speeds of 22 mph
(36 kph). Emperor Penguins can stay under water for up
to 18 minutes.
27.
Arctic terns have the longest annual migration of
any bird. They fly 25,000 miles (40,000 m) from the
Arctic to the Antarctic and then back again.
28. The bird with the
greatest wingspan of any other bird is the Wandering
Albatross at up to 11.8 ft (3.63 m).
29.
Bar-headed Geese fly across the Himalayas, the
highest mountains in the world. They fly nearly 5 miles
(over 8,000 m) up in the sky, almost as high as jet
planes. The highest-flying bird is the Griffon Vulture.
In 1973, one collided with an airplane more than 6.8
miles above the Ivory Coast in Africa.
30. The largest,
tallest, and heaviest bird in the world is the ostrich.
Male ostriches can reach up to 9 ft. tall (2.7 m) and
weigh up to 350 lb. (160 kg). Their eyes are bigger than
any other land animals' eyes and are even larger than
their brain.
31.
European wren tiny bird, has a surprisingly loud
song
32.
The song of a European wren is made of more than
700 different notes a minute and can be heard 1,650 feet
(500 m) away.
33. The ostrich is the
only bird that willingly takes care of other females’
eggs.
34.
Ostriches do not bury their heads in the sand
when danger is near. But they have been seen to lie on
the ground with their long neck stretched out flat if
they want to hide.
35. The
biggest bird that ever existed on Earth is the
flightless elephant bird, which is now extinct. It
weighed about 1000 lb. (450 kg.). Seven ostrich eggs
would fit inside one elephant bird’s egg. Elephant birds
died out 400 years ago, but people still find pieces of
their tough-shelled eggs.
36. The Emperor Penguin
is the only bird that lays its eggs in the middle of
winter. By laying its eggs so early, it gives its young
a head start. The babies need all spring, summer, and
fall to grow big enough to survive the next winter.
37. Oilbirds eat oil
palm fruits, which make the birds oily too. People near
the caves where the oilbirds lived used to trap the
oilbirds and boil them down for the oil.
38.
The fastest flying bird in a dive is the
Peregrine Falcon. It averages speeds of over 110 mph
(180 kph)
39. Oilbirds are the
only birds that use echolocation the way that bats do.
However, bats are much better at it. A bat can even fly
through the blades of a moving fan. Oilbirds are also
the only nocturnal fruit-eating birds in the world.
40. Birds typically have
two, three, or four toes. A typical perching bird has
three pointing forward, and one back. Birds that run on
hard ground have only three, all pointing forward.
Ostriches only have two toes, which are shaped like the
hoof of an antelope.
41. Sooty Terns can even
sleep in the air
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