These new discoveries about Anna's Hummingbird are fantastic. The article makes it sound like this little bird can break (a typo was corrected here, thanks to The Rodent.) the sound barrier, does not come out and say that, but if you follow some of the statements through, being able to break the sound barrier is the conclusion. The reporter makes the statement:
It is also faster than a fighter plane with its afterburners on – 150 "body lengths a second" - and the space shuttle during atmospheric re-entry (207 body lengths a second).
Literally that means the sound barrier is being broken, but then the addition of 150 "body lengths a second" and "207 body lengths a second" makes for a confusing read, does this speedy little fellow break the sound barrier or not? I would like to believe they do, with the little tiny "chirp" to match their little bodies, when pulling out of their dives!!
The author also states this Humming bird reaches 58mph in its' dive, far below the sound barrier, still I would rather believe this fellow breaks the barrier. Going to have to start calling this bird the Yeager Hummingbird, and my apologies to the Duchess.
And for such a fragile little bundle of color and feathers to be able to pull 10Gs is beyond my comprehension. 10 times the pull of gravity!!!??? Let us say I weigh 200 pounds, if I were to pull 10Gs, it would be the strain on my body of weighing 2000 pounds!!!!! Hope you enjoy the read, Hummingbirds always were such amazing little creations, more so now. -- JohnOh
ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD DECLARED WORLD'S FASTEST ANIMAL
by Richard Alleyne, Science Correspondent, The Telegraph OnLine, Telegraph.co.uk
They found that when the bird, a native of North America, pulls up at the end of the swoop it experiences forces 10 times the pull of gravity – more than even experienced jet pilots can endure without passing out.
A male Anna's hummingbird caught during a display dive, compiled from high speed video. At the bottom of the dive, the bird flares its tail for 60 milliseconds. The inner vanes of the bird's two outer tail feathers vibrate in the 50 mph airstream to produce a brief chirp. (Photo, audio and video by Christopher J. Clark and Teresa Feo/UC Berkeley)
The amazing speeds were measured using a series of cameras which calculated that the male bird, which is only four inches long, attained speeds in excess of 58mph, as it dived from 100ft in the air to impress a mate.
The team at the University of California, which reported its findings in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B, revealed that the bird flies at 385 "body lengths a second" which is faster than the previous record holders, the peregrine falcon diving in pursuit of prey and swallows diving from high altitude.
It is also faster than a fighter plane with its afterburners on – 150 "body lengths a second" - and the space shuttle during atmospheric re-entry (207 body lengths a second).
Male Anna's Hummingbird
The Anna's Hummingbird, which was named in the 19th century after Anna Massena, Duchess of Rivoli and weighs less than five grams, normally flies at 33mph but hits even higher speeds when display diving during the breeding season.
Female Anna's Hummingbird nesting.
When a female flies onto a male's territory, he rises up and then dives. At the bottom of the dive when the bird reaches top speed it produces a loud sound, described by some as an "explosive squeak" with its outer tail-feathers.
