List of birds by flight speed explained

This is a list of the fastest flying birds in the world. A bird's velocity is necessarily variable; a hunting bird will reach much greater speeds while diving to catch prey than when flying horizontally. The bird that can achieve the greatest airspeed is the peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus), able to exceed in its dives.[1] [2] A close relative of the common swift, the white-throated needletail (Hirundapus caudacutus), is commonly reported as the fastest bird in level flight with a reported top speed of . This record remains unconfirmed as the measurement methods have never been published or verified. The record for the fastest confirmed level flight by a bird is held by the common swift.

Birds by flying speed

Common nameImageSpeciesFamilydata-sort-type="number"Average horizontal speeddata-sort-type="number"Maximum horizontal speedMaximum airspeedRemark
Peregrine falconFalco peregrinusFalconidae[3]

[4]
High-speed dive—pointed long wings
Saker falconFalco cherrugFalconidae[5]
[6] High-speed dive—pointed long wings
Golden eagleAquila chrysaetosAccipitridae[7]


Grey-headed albatrossThalassarche ChrysostomaDiomedeidae[8] [9] [10]
wingspan allows for high power use from wind.
GyrfalconFalco rusticolusFalconidae[11] [12] High-speed dive—pointed long wings
White-throated needletailHirundapus caudacutusApodidae[13] [14]
High-speed wings
Common swiftApus apusApodidae [15] High-speed wings
Eurasian hobbyFalco subbuteoFalconidae[16] Can sometimes outfly the swift as it eats them and catches them on the wing.
FrigatebirdFregataFregatidae[17] Slow gliding/soaring high aspect ratio
Spur-winged goosePlectropterusAnatidae[18] High-speed wings
Red-breasted merganserMergus serratorAnatidae[19] High–aspect ratio wings
CanvasbackAythya valisineriaAnatidae[20] High-speed wings
Common eiderSomateria mollissimaAnatidae[21] High-speed wings
Eurasian tealAnas creccaAnatidaeHigh–aspect ratio wings
Anna's hummingbirdCalypte annaTrochilidae[22] Rapidly-beating wings

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Basic Facts About Peregrine Falcon . Defenders of Wildlife . 14 May 2013.
  2. Web site: All About the Peregrine Falcon . January 15, 2008 . Department of the Interior . U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service . https://web.archive.org/web/20080416195055/http://www.fws.gov/endangered/recovery/peregrine/QandA.html#fast . 2008-04-16 . 14 May 2013.
  3. Web site: Fastest on Earth: Malik fuel . Extreme Science . 14 May 2013.
  4. News: Tom. Harpole. March 2005. Falling with the Falcon. Air & Space magazine. 14 May 2013.
  5. Web site: The Saker Falcon in Austria . 27 December 2020.
  6. Web site: Saker Falcon . 2020 . 1 February 2021 .
  7. Web site: Kari. Kirschbaum. Alicia. Ivory . Aquila chrysaetos golden eagle . The Animal Diversity Web . University of Michigan Museum of Zoology . 2002 . 14 May 2013.
  8. Web site: Guinness Records - Fastest Bird Level Flight . Guinness World Records Limited . 12 April 2014.
  9. Catry . Paulo . Phillips . Richard . 13 May 2004 . Sustained fast travel by a gray-headed albatross (Thalassarche chrysostoma) riding an antarctic storm . The Auk . 121 . 4 . 1208 . 10.1642/0004-8038(2004)121[1208:SFTBAG]2.0.CO;2 .
  10. Sustained ground speed for approximately nine hours with no rest on high tailwinds during an Antarctic storm.
  11. Web site: Gyrfalcon - Animal Ark.
  12. Tucker . V. A. . Cade . T. J. . Tucker . A. E. . Diving speeds and angles of a gyrfalcon (Falco rusticolus) . Journal of Experimental Biology . 201 . 2061–2070 . July 1998 . 9622578 .
  13. News: Jody . Bourton . Supercharged swifts take flight speed record . BBC Earth News . 2 March 2010 . 14 May 2013.
  14. The BBC warns against taking this value too seriously, as the methods employed to measure it have never been published, rendering its verification difficult.
  15. Encyclopedia: Encyclopædia Britannica Online . swifts . 2013 . 15 May 2013.
  16. http://www.birdsofbritain.co.uk/bird-guide/hobby.asp Hobby, Falco subbuteo
  17. Animal Corner; Sea Birds Frigate Bird Galapagos Sea Birds - The Great Frigate Bird and the Magnificent Frigate Bird
  18. Free find Spur-Winged Goose Plectropterus gambensis - Kenya Birds
  19. The Cornell lab of Ornithology - Cornell University Bird Guide - Red-breasted Merganser
  20. Ducks Unlimited - Wet-lands conversation Canvasback
  21. http://web4.audubon.org/bird/boa/F39_G5k.html Family XXXIX. Anatinae. Ducks.
  22. Clark . C. J.. Dudley . R.. 10.1098/rspb.2009.0090. Flight costs of long, sexually selected tails in hummingbirds. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 276. 1664. 2109–2115. 2009. 19324747. 2677254.