This minuscule bird is a natural wonder. Its looks so fragile and beautiful, yet it can put any other creature in the animal kingdom to shame when comparing strength. The hummingbird is the epitome of energy, vitality and raw power. Here are some examples of its amazing capabilities:
- The hummingbird cannot walk, as it has poorly developed feet. However, it makes up for this with its tremendous wing muscles, which make up 25% to 30% of its total body weight, thus allowing for rapid flight. The smaller the hummingbird, the faster its wings beat. The range is from 10 to 80 beats per second, fastest when hovering in mid-air. Humans couldn’t beat that even if it were only our fingers that were flapping!
- If one were to calculate the daily energy output of a hummingbird, (including sleeping, perching, eating, flying, hovering, etc.,) a human man around 170 pounds trying to match the mighty bird, would have to have a total energy output of around 155,000 calories.
- It is the only bird that can fly backwards, and can rotate its wings in a circle – it can also fly up, down, sideways, and upside down, as well as hover on the spot. Curious…
- The award for tiniest bird on Earth also goes to a species of hummingbird: the bee hummingbird. It can happily sit on the end of the pencil, and is only two inches long.
- Each bird visits around 1,000 to 2,000 flowers a day, playing an essential role in pollination, along with bees.
- If a human were to expend the same amount of energy as a hovering hummingbird, he or she would have to give out 40 horsepower.
- The “delicate” ruby-throated hummingbird migrates from its breeding ground in Eastern North America to its wintering grounds in Mexico or central America, a distance of at least 2,000 miles. Not to mention, it also crosses the Gulf of Mexico, which is 500 miles without food or rest. And this is a bird that’s barely three inches, we’re talking about!
