Speedy Birds!
It’s a bummer we can’t fly the way birds do. The best we can do is jump out of a plane and fall nearly 200 kilometers per hour, until the parachute opens (hopefully) and slows you down.
That’s pretty speedy, but nothing like the peregrine falcon. This bird hunts by doing nosedives out of the sky at more than 320 km an hour! That’s 3-4 times as fast as a car, making the peregrine falcon the fastest animal on or above Earth.
Luckily, these birds also know how to pull out of that nosedive and fly back up – no parachute needed. Also, falling at that speed through the air could hurt a bird. So the peregrine falcon has a third eyelid on each eye that helps keep its eyeballs moist, and bones on its beak push air to the side so it can breathe easily while diving. So nothing can stop this bird. Other birds had better beware!
That’s pretty speedy, but nothing like the peregrine falcon. This bird hunts by doing nosedives out of the sky at more than 320 km an hour! That’s 3-4 times as fast as a car, making the peregrine falcon the fastest animal on or above Earth.
Luckily, these birds also know how to pull out of that nosedive and fly back up – no parachute needed. Also, falling at that speed through the air could hurt a bird. So the peregrine falcon has a third eyelid on each eye that helps keep its eyeballs moist, and bones on its beak push air to the side so it can breathe easily while diving. So nothing can stop this bird. Other birds had better beware!
Questions
Wee ones: If a falcon catches 6 pigeons for dinner, what numbers would it say to count them?
Little kids: Who’s faster, a falcon flying at 200 km an hour, or a cheetah running at 70 km an hour? Bonus: Who has more eyelids, 3 peregrine falcons, or you and 3 friends?
Big kids: If you skydive at 190 km an hour, how much faster can the falcon fly? Bonus: The falcon’s strong wings can be up to 119 cm across. If you lay across that bird, how would your length compare to that?
Little kids: Who’s faster, a falcon flying at 200 km an hour, or a cheetah running at 70 km an hour? Bonus: Who has more eyelids, 3 peregrine falcons, or you and 3 friends?
Big kids: If you skydive at 190 km an hour, how much faster can the falcon fly? Bonus: The falcon’s strong wings can be up to 119 cm across. If you lay across that bird, how would your length compare to that?
Answers:
Wee ones: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or (caw, caw, caw, caw, caw, caw is also an acceptable answer for birds struggling with their English....)
Little kids: The falcon! Bonus: The falcons. The falcons together have 9 eyelids, while you and your friends have 8.
Big kids: 130 km an hour faster. Bonus: Different for everyone.
Little kids: The falcon! Bonus: The falcons. The falcons together have 9 eyelids, while you and your friends have 8.
Big kids: 130 km an hour faster. Bonus: Different for everyone.