Which bird can fly faster than an F1 car?
F1 cars reach speeds up to 360kmph. But this bird can dive at speeds of up to 390kmph. What is it?
The Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix 2022 is coming up! While the F1 may be synonymous with high-octane action, grand festivities and unforgettable experiences, I have something even better: information on the fastest bird in the world! (Plus information on birds in general!! Help support my love for writing about birds by sharing my articles!)
They’re so small and round: are you sure this is the ‘fastest animal in the world’?
Yes, these guys look unassuming. They only get as tall as a Standard Poodle dog (50+ cm), and weigh up to 1.5kg - a large bottle of water. Yet they’ve clinched the title as the fastest animal (not just fastest bird) in the world.
Meet the Peregrine Falcon, whose looks belie their superb air skills.
Plus, they are one of the few birds that actually prey on other birds!
People have admired these falcons for their skills for thousands of years. The Peregrine Falcon has deep roots in the sport of falconry (the sport of hunting with falcons) and for over 3,000 years, the Peregrine Falcon has been a prized bird. They are beloved not only for their athleticism and eagerness to hunt, but also for their wonderful disposition that makes them one of the easier falcons to train!
When falcon populations dropped over the 1950s-70s due to harmful pesticides, age-old falconry data on breeding and raising these birds was used to help these species make their eventual comeback.
It's no wonder falconers love them: their bodies are built for speed!
First off, I want to say that it’s not exactly true that Peregrine Falcons are the fastest fliers in the world. They only reach their top speeds when they are diving for prey. They do have a large breastbone, which allows them to flap more vigorously to generate power. #BreastboneForDays.
However, they reach their top speeds when they dive. And we can see why: Peregrine Falcons are shaped like missiles.
Nifty modifications in the eye keep their corneas from drying up, and a sophisticated breathing system allows them to breathe at such high speeds. (This is important - fighter pilots who reach high speeds and high altitudes must wear masks to supply them with oxygen to avoid passing out from low levels of oxygen.) During their killer dives, Peregrine Falcons also fold their wings in to minimize drag.
All this means they can dive towards other birds (aka their lunch) at speeds of over 322km per hour. The fastest recorded dive was at 390 km per hour.
But being faster than an F1 car is one thing. If a Ferrari were to actually hit something at the speeds they reach, wouldn’t the driver’s life be at stake? How do Peregrine Falcons swoop down on prey at >320kph without ending up as a splatter of blood and goo themselves?
How do these feathered fighter jets reach speeds that even F1 cars can’t - without dying in the process?
Yet as much as the Peregrine is a paragon of speed, it’s also a mystery.
How do the falcon pull off such a feat without hurting themselves in the process?
How do they hit their targets at such astronomical speed?
Why do they need to reach such speeds in the first place?
To answer the first two questions, let’s start with the way they are built.
One idea holds that in lieu of brakes, the falcon unfurls its wings just before it strikes its prey, reducing its speed enough to make any last-minute adjustments and avoid injury. This helps them to avoid injury, and also stay more accurate when hunting. That means that right before the moment of impact, the bird reaches a slower, safer speed.
That said, it’s curious why the Peregrine Falcon even needs to reach such high speed at all.
But it turns out, not only the speed of the stoop not only allows the falcon to catch fast flying birds, it also allows the falcon to deliver a knockout blow with a fist-like clenched talon against game that may be much larger than itself.
The Peregrine Falcon feeds almost exclusively on medium-sized birds such as pigeons, doves and waterfowl (like ducks and geese). Most male Falcons weigh below 700g, and most female Falcons weigh below 1kg. On the other hand, their prey range from 250g (pigeons) to 750g (whistling ducks) and over a kilo (mallards).
Anyone else in the animal kingdom faster than a Ferrari?
Let’s take a look at the other animals that made the list of the fastest animals in the world.
1) The fastest land animal: the cheetah, at 70mph.
This is a animal everyone probably already associates with speed! A natural-born sprinter, cheetahs can reach a top running speed of 70 miles per hour. Cheetahs are one of the most aerodynamic animals in the world. They’re the slimmest of the big cats, with long powerful legs, and small, lightweight heads. When they run, they don’t move their heads at all! That adds to their aerodynamism.
But, more impressively, they can accelerate from 0 to 60 miles per hour in just three short seconds! That’s better than a Ferrari, and better than when Rihanna sang “it's 0 to 60 in 3.5”.
However, cheetahs can’t keep up with a sportscar for long. They can maintain their top speed for only 20 to 30 seconds, and after that, they need up to 30 minutes to recover from that burst of speed. You can consider them sprinters, not marathon runners!
With that info in mind, would you think the cheetah is the fastest mammal on earth?
You’d be wrong for thinking so - and I bet you can’t guess which mammal holds this distinction!
2) The fastest mammal: amazingly, it is a bat! Meet the spooky Mexican free-tailed bat, clocking in at 99 mph.
Yes, these bats fly faster than cheetahs can run! But, sadly, not as fast as a Ferrari.
Bats are known as highly maneuverable fliers, capable of using echolocation to snag mosquitoes and gnats in the air. Many also consider them to be relatively slow, especially in comparison to birds.
But that’s because we’ve been viewing bats and birds all wrong! Birds - including the Peregrine Falcon - reach their top speeds by diving, and using the wind to increase their speeds. Bats, on the other hand, achieve their top speed through wing power alone!
In fact, when Peregrine Falcons fly ‘parallel’ with the ground – what researchers call horizontal flight – the peregrine’s speed maxes out around 60 mph. So a Mexican free-tailed bat, at 99mph, would easily beat this bird in a race!
3) The fastest fish: Black Marlin
The fastest recorded fish in the world is the Black Marlin, which is definitely built for speed: they have long, thin, sharp bills, which help them slice through the water quickly, and rigid pectoral fins. In the water, the Black Marlin can clock 80 miles per hour. But out of the water, nothing. (Duh - but Ferraris can’t drive underwater either, so…)
So are Black Marlins faster than a Ferrari? That depends. Is the competition held underwater or on the ground? Depending on the racetrack, it seems the winner is clear.
Peregrine Falcons can be found almost everywhere
Plus, did you know? The Peregrine Falcon is one of the most widespread birds in the world. It is found on all continents except Antarctica. They seemed to have done this all by themselves, and not because humankind introduced them to new lands.
For example, think of the common pigeons (the ones that poop on you and your cars…) Although pigeons are a staple in most modern cities, they were originally from North Africa, the Middle East and Europe. They were brought all over the world (including the United States, and Singapore!) as a source of food for human immigrants! Like chicken, but better!
Since then, pigeons have escaped their would-be consumers and have spread all over the world, except for the Sahara Desert, Antarctica and the high Arctic. Isn’t that interesting?
Thanks Pat! Your posts never fail to brighten our day at work. We enjoy reading it! Bringing smiles to our faces.
What a beautiful bird! I loved the info and graphics about being shaped like a missile. Super cool!