Why do hummingbirds flutter so fast?

Unless you have a "lynx view", detect a Hummingbird in its natural environment is quite complicated.The flight speed makes them almost undetectable, unless we just catch it by taking nectar from a flower.
One of its many common names is "zunzun", which makes reference to the sound produced by the flutter of a hummingbird, like a buzzing sound.In this article of Animal Expert we will talk about because hummingbirds flutter very fast , their speed and other curiosities.

Characteristics of hummingbirds

Hummingbirds are birds belonging to a subfamily of apodiform birds (small-legged birds) called Trochilinae , they are commonly called picaflor, because of their way of obtaining food.There are more than 300 species of hummingbirds, spread across the Americas, but where there is a greater diversity is in Central America.
They are usually birds of small size, among them is the smallest bird in the world, the hummingbird zunzuncito ( Mellisuga helenae ), which measures no more than 5.5 centimeters from beak to tail.Although there is also the giant hummingbird ( Patagona gigas ), which measures about 25 centimeters.
In addition to the flight, one of the most fascinating characteristics of this animal is its beak.It usually has a conical, straight and elongated shape, but others can have an upward or downward curvature, they can even have spikes almost as long as its body.
Some species of hummingbird have coevolved with the plant species To which they usually feed, for example the Heliconia tortuosa plant has co-evolved with two species of hummingbirds, the green hermit hummingbird (Phaethornis guy) and the purple hummingbird ( Campylopterus hemileucurus ), so that only these two types of birds can feed on the nectar of this flower (due to the depth to which it is found), in addition the plant obtains a rapid and effective pollination.
The vast majority of hummingbird species have very striking colors that serve to mimic their surroundings.
Why do hummingbirds flutter so fast?

How many times does a hummingbird move its wings per second?

Perhaps, the most characteristic feature of hummingbirds is their way of flying, unique among birds.Some researchers say that the flight of a hummingbird is more similar to the flight of insects than that of birds , since it can fly upwards, downwards and even backwards or backwards, they can even remain flying in the air at the same point, something fundamental so that they can feed.
An average hummingbird can beat the wings up to 53 times per second.The fastest recorded speed was 80 beats per second in the amethyst hummingbird (Calliphlox amethystina) and, the slowest, that of the giant hummingbird ( Patagona gigas ), only a few 10-15 times per second.
Hummingbirds need to flutter so fast to keep themselves "immobile" in the air while they take the nectar from the flowers.In addition, this kind of fast flight can make them invisible to the predators.

Flight dynamics of the hummingbird

The size of the wings of a hummingbird is very small compared to the body.This, together with the design of the wings of a hummingbird, is very different from that of other birds.Having very small wings helps you to rise and reduce the resistance of the air in order to stay in flight optimizing the energy.
For these animals, this type of wings is essential, because their legs are very weak and could not stand for a long time while They eat the flowers.
Why do hummingbirds flutter so fast?

At what speed does a hummingbird's heart beat?

To maintain the speed of the wings, the heart of a hummingbird must also beat very fast, around 1,260 beats per minute, although this speed can drop to 50 beats per minute during hibernation.
When the amount of food available for the hummingbird wanes, they are able to enter a state of hibernation in order to increase the chances of survival.
This high heart rate makes hummingbirds the animals with the highest metabolic rate in the animal kingdom.By comparison, if a human being had the same metabolic rate as a hummingbird, he would need to eat 129 kilograms of meat daily to maintain himself.
The respiratory rate of these animals is also very high, even while at rest, a hummingbird can breathe 250 times per minute.
Despite this, hummingbirds are relatively long-lived animals, reaching some species at 5 years of age.
Why do hummingbirds flutter so fast?

If you want to read more articles similar to that hummingbirds flutter very fast? , we recommend that you enter our Curiosities section of the animal world.
Bibliography

Altshuler, DL, Dudley, R.&Ellington, CP2004.Aerodynamic forces of revolving hummingbird wings and wing models.Journal of zoology, 264 (4), 327-332.
Altshuler, DL, Dudley, R., Heredia, SM,&McGuire, JA2010.Allometry of hummingbird lifting performance.Journal of Experimental Biology, 213 (5), 725-734.
Tobalske, BW, Warrick, DR, Clark, CJ , Powers, DR, Hedrick, TL, Hyder, GA,&Biewener, AA2007.Three-dimensional kinematics of hummingbird flight.Journal of Experimental Biology, 210 (13), 2368-2382.
Warrick , DR, Tobalske, BW,&Powers, DR2005.Aerodynamics of the hovering hummingbird.Nature, 435 (7045), 1094.

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