How fast is Anna’s hummingbird?

Anna’s hummingbird (Calypte anna) is a small hummingbird found along the western coast of North America. Named after French botanist Anna Massena, these tiny birds are best known for their speed and agility in flight. Their wings can beat up to 80 times per second, allowing them to hover in place, fly backwards, and reach top speeds of over 60 miles per hour. In this article, we will explore exactly how fast Anna’s hummingbird can fly and what adaptations allow it to achieve such incredible speeds.

Hovering and backward flight

One of the most astounding abilities of Anna’s hummingbird is how it can hover in place by rapidly flapping its wings back and forth. While hovering, the wings move in a horizontal figure-eight pattern that generates enough lift to keep the bird suspended. High-speed video footage shows their wings beating around 80 times per second while hovering. This allows them to stay nearly motionless in order to feed on flower nectar.

Anna’s hummingbird is also one of the only birds that can fly backwards. They accomplish this by inverting their wings on the backward strokes so the leading edge angles downward instead of upward. This reversed airflow provides thrust in the opposite direction, allowing these nimble hummers to dart backwards when needed. Their backward flight speed reaches up to 9 body lengths per second.

Maximum forward flight speed

During forward flight, Anna’s hummingbird can reach incredibly fast speeds by flapping their wings up to 100 times per second. This rapid wing movement generates the lift and thrust needed to propel their lightweight bodies at high velocities.

Scientists have measured the maximum forward flight speed of Anna’s hummingbird during courtship dives, when the males dive toward the ground to impress females. In these steep dives, the birds can reach speeds over 60 miles per hour! This is among the fastest of any hummingbird species and indeed one of the swiftest of all birds.

The current record holder for fastest measured speed of an Anna’s hummingbird is a male clocked at 38 meters per second, or about 85 miles per hour! This measurement was taken during a courtship display dive by researchers at UC Riverside using specialized camera equipment.

How can they fly so fast?

Anna’s hummingbirds have several key anatomical and physiological adaptations that allow them to fly with such speed and precision:

Aerodynamic body shape

Their small, compact bodies are perfectly streamlined for minimizing drag during flight. Their tapered shape and short tails reduce turbulence and allow them to zip through the air with ease.

Powerful flight muscles

These tiny birds have incredibly strong flight muscles that make up around a quarter of their total body weight. The pectoral muscles that control the wings are able to contract at incredibly fast rates to power their wing beats.

Lightweight bones

A hummingbird’s skeleton only accounts for around 4% of its total weight. Their fragile bones, including hollow vertebrae and a flattened, forked breastbone, help minimize weight and maximize aerial agility.

Rotating wings

Unlike other birds, hummingbirds can rotate their wings at the shoulder joint to produce forward, backward, or hovering motion as needed. This allows for precision maneuvering.

Enlarged heart

These hummingbirds have the highest heart rate of all birds, up to 1,260 beats per minute while hovering. Their enlarged heart and rapid metabolism provides energy for sustained high-speed flight.

Role of fast flight in hummingbird ecology

The speed and agility of Anna’s hummingbird plays an important ecological role in their lives:

Feeding

Their ability to hover in place by rapidly beating their wings allows Anna’s hummingbird to feed on flower nectar, even from blossoms that don’t provide a perch. Their quick bursts of speed also help them defend flower territories.

Courtship

Male Anna’s hummingbirds perform dramatic courtship dives at high speeds to impress females. Their rapid swoops and loops advertise their fitness during mating displays.

Predator evasion

When threatened, these tiny birds can escape danger by flying quickly in any direction, even straight up and down. Their acceleration and maneuverability helps them evade predators.

Migration

Some populations migrate up to 1,000 miles between breeding and wintering grounds. Their ability for sustained fast flight assists northward and southward migrations.

Comparisons with other fast birds and insects

While Anna’s hummingbird is impressively fast, how does it compare to the quickest flying animals?

Other speedy birds

Among birds, Peregrine falcons and Golden eagles can achieve higher speeds during dives. But for sustained horizontal flight, Anna’s hummingbird dominates with a combination of rapid wing beats and an aerodynamic build.

Fastest insect fliers

While no insects can match hummingbird flight speeds, some can beat their wings at similar frequencies:

Tiny midges can flap their tiny wings up to 1000 times per second! But they generate so little thrust that their flight speed is slow. Dragonflies are likely the fastest insect fliers, though nowhere near as swift as hummingbirds.

Conclusion

With a maximum measured speed of 85 mph and the ability to sustain rapid wing flapping up to 100 times per second, Anna’s hummingbird is one of the swiftest birds in flight. Its tiny, optimized body allows phenomenal aerial agility and precision hovering. So the next time you see one buzz by, appreciate that you are witnessing some of the most advanced flight capabilities in the animal kingdom! Their speed and dexterity is crucial for feeding, territorial behavior, courtship, and escape from predators. Though tiny, Anna’s hummingbird punches far above its weight class with its incredibly fast flight.