bird flight

[sfsorrow]

hiya, i was recently in finland and i noticed the local birds needed to flap a lot more to take off than they do anywhere else i've been.i was wondering if this was down to the cold,it was about -20,i'm probably talking twaddle but would be interested with your theories.cheers all

[Cetti]

Perhaps they were shaking the ice off their legs!

If you want a bit more of a sensible answer (if there is one) you will have to give us the bird species and the habitat.

[Robert G]

I think it's more likely there was no wind when you noticed the birds. Birds, and aircraft, get airborne most easily, and more quickly, when they fly into the wind.

I don't think air temperature makes any difference, although it could be that the birds were doing their warm-ups before take-off, or waiting for clearance to take-off. Why didn't you ask them while you had the chance?

[mrbatfink]

Temperature does make a difference to the flight of birds, especially larger birds that rely on thermal currents for sustained flight. The mass and wingspan of the bird also need to be considered, heavy birds with small wingspans need to flap faster than light birds with large wingspans. Hence the humming bird which is heavy for its size with a tiny wingspan has to flap so fast its wings make a humming sound... so they were probably just different birds to what you see in your country.

[imflyingaway]

yes it is because of thecold 4 an exp u'll have 2 ask a geek

[qapmoc]

If they are birds adapted to cold climates they might have more fat (insulation) than the same birds in warmer climes and therefore need more energy to get off the ground.