Check Your Flight Pattern

[416 words] Ornithologists (those who study birds) tell us that birds navigate in the air one of three ways: 1) By flapping. This is very labor intensive. It requires that the birds continuously beat their wings against the air so as to create lift. But if the bird stops flapping, then it will very quickly fall to the ground. Some examples of “flappers” would be sparrows and hummingbirds. 2) By gliding. Birds that do this will flap to a certain height and then spread their wings out and glide for great distances. This is very energy efficient, but without any additional effort, they too will eventually end up back on the earth. Some examples of “gliders” include albatrosses and gulls. 3) By soaring. These are birds that can flap to certain heights and then take advantage of the wind and updrafts, etc. to stay in the air. If the conditions…