Bugs' day

Reading back an earlier article: Bird that flies like bug, I realised I had some shots of my own I should have used to illustrate their 50-50 use of upstroke and downstroke to get them lifted.


So, here they are. Shot with 70-200mm, f2.8 nikkor lens on separate outings:


hardworking insects eying for the same pollen grains



buhod is the local ethnic Dusun name for this large social insect. It is the smaller cousin of the black buhod a.k.a bonging (pictures above); usually found feeding and pollinating early in the morning.



Lily commonly found growing in unkempt drains.

Bird that flies like bug

A little bit of science today but hopefully one that's interesting.

Ever wonder how hummingbirds float on air hovering around flowers in search of nectar, much like insects and bugs do? That's because they pretty much fly the same way. Well, almost.

Hovering gently over a flower. Image credit: Janine Russell

An insect (bee) approaching a flower petal. Image credit: Fotoopa

Hummingbirds pull off their aerial antics by flying more like insects than their fellow birds. Most birds only produce lift in the downward flap, i.e. their wings are drawn towards their body on the upstroke. But the hummingbird, by flipping its wing before it flaps upwards, can create lift in both directions. Insects do the same thing but doing so at different percentage of downstroke/upstroke lifting ratio.

The lift on hummingbirds is obtained from 75% downstroke and 25% upstroke. For all other birds, the lift is 100% downstroke. In comparison, bugs get theirs from 50%-50% up and downstroke.

How do hummingbirds flip their wings since they have bones, unlike insects? Biologists say they twist their wrists before each upstroke.

Ouch! I can't take twisting my wrist 140 degree before every movement. Madness, that would be awfully painful.