Meet The Bird That Sleeps Flying!
A bird that sleeps flying?
That’s right, the Black Swift can spend at least 10 months flying without interruption. This hypothesis was raised by ornithologist Ronald Lockley. The Black Swift spends most of its life in the air and lands only to breed.
This hypothesis was recently demonstrated thanks to an investigation in which a tiny GPS was used on the bodies of these birds. This device was specifically placed in 13 individuals. Thus, it was possible to know the acceleration, location and if the animals were flying.
A bird that sleeps flying: how do they do it?
Still, many people still wonder how it is possible that there is a bird that sleeps in flight. The truth is that there are several birds that have this incredible ability, including the frigate. She is a two meter long bird whose skeleton is ultra-light. As such, it can glide for hours.
Others theorize that the Black Swift flies above the clouds to avoid predators and sleep. Thus, these animals can greatly reduce the number of changes in flight. In any case, it has been shown that they can go almost a year without perching. So they need to sleep somehow.
the bird that sleeps flying
The Black Swift, the bird that sleeps in flight, has many behaviors besides its sleep mode that are worth mentioning. They are migratory birds that spend the winter in the Sahara region and reproduce during spring in Europe.
Like other birds, they are an example of monogamy in the animal kingdom. Therefore, they spend their entire lives with the same partner. They also have an excellent sense of direction. In one experiment, a group of Swiss Black Swifts were transferred to Lisbon. After some time, at least half of them managed to return to their colony of origin. It is also one of the fastest birds in the world because it can exceed 100 km/h.
It’s not just the bird that sleeps flying
The truth is that the Black Swift is not just a bird that sleeps in flight. In addition, this animal also performs other behaviors in flight. It feeds, builds its nest, drinks water from lakes and even copulates without perching on the ground.
There is a reason why, when we find a Black Swift on the ground, we should help. Its huge wings are not made for taking off from the ground. Therefore, sometimes they can fail in this and are not able to start the journey again.
As for feeding, the Black Swift opens its mouth and flies by doing acrobatics around the insects. This animal can hunt thousands of invertebrates every day, especially when it needs to feed its young.
