Quiz: Who else can fly like this?


Quick!  Name an animal — not a bird — that can fly like this.  Here are some clues.

  • This animal doesn’t flap, but it does fly.
  • It has better lift and less drag than many insects.
  • It’s lift ability is the same as for hawks and wood ducks.
  • The longest time it’s been recorded aloft is 45 seconds.
  • It can travel as much as 1,300 feet in one flight.  That’s more than 4 football fields!
  • And, with the help of the wind, it can speed along at 43 miles per hour.

Leave a comment with your answer.

(If you’re really stumped, the answer is at this link.)

(photo from Wikimedia Commons.  Click on the image to see the original)

7 thoughts on “Quiz: Who else can fly like this?

  1. I am thinking flying squirrel….we had them here and they would climb to the top of the tree and glide down to the bottom or middle of the next tree and keep doing this until they reach their destination. Once when I was out looking for them and putting out peanuts, one actually landed on my back with force, that I thought someone slapped me very HARD. It quickly jumped over my shoulder and on to the tree…we were BOTH surprised..haven’t had them for several years, but when they did come, it was family groups…I wanted to pet them since they looked so silky…I was able to get some decent photos in the dark of them taking peanuts…If this isn’t correct, at least I had a good memory for our Flying Squirrels…one who I named “Rocky” and he/she would come when I called.

    Checked the answer…oh well..I can see flying squirrels more than flying fish…

  2. I would have said flying squirrel, too. Though I bet if you lived on the seacoast you might have said flying fish. I’ve not seen either. The only flying mammals I’m familiar with are bats ^”^

  3. It’s either one of those fish that “fly” or a really ambitious flying squirrel …. hey .. maybe he also read “Jonathan Livingston Seagull”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *