BGR
One of the big challenges in decoding the hum of a hummingbird is the fact that its wings move so incredibly fast. You need some pretty fancy equipment to actually study the birds with any degree of accuracy, but researchers at Stanford were able to design a system comprised of microphones, cameras, and pressure sensors that are sensitive enough to detect the air pressure changes created by the flapping wings. This allowed them to generate a “3D acoustic model” that finally revealed the secrets of hummingbird hums.
The hum is generated from “the pressure difference between the topside and underside of the wings, which changes both in magnitude and orientation as the wings flap back and forth,” a press release accompanying the study explains. More
They don’t remember the words eh?
I always thought it was because they didn’t know the words.
Because they can’t carry a tune. Old jokes never die.
Love Hummingbirds they have a big personality for such a little bird. I sure miss Big Daddy,😿 trying to train the Ruby Throated male in my yard to feed from my hand, he needs a name, that’s the project for the weekend. 😉
Same as with any other flying animal that hums. Pressure differential on the top and bottom surfaces of the airfoil causes flutter.
Humming birds and bumble bees are two of the greatest glories and crown jewels of God’s creation.
Their feeder is filled & waiting in the oak outside my office for when they return.
They hum because it attracts the humbugs on which they feed. They only use the nectar to wash them down.
Bah humbug!
Reasonating vibrating wings?
Yea, well gee, I figured that out the first time I saw one. I think I was 3.
Damn little hummingbirds. Several weeks ago we got a about 20” of snow and I was doing a bit of shoveling. I stopped and sat on the rail of a deck and the darn little thing must have been attracted to my hat because when I looked up he was so close to me he could have stuck his beak in my eye. Nearly caused me to fall backwards off the deck. And I didn’t hear any humming to warn me.
Miss Kitty, you are so right. They are amazing birds. I could watch them all day long. One day I will!
God Bless us all!
Is this a Captain Obvious riff? If you move pretty much anything back and forth through the air at a rate somewhere between 20 and 15,000 times per second, it makes a sound. And if you move pretty much anything through the air, there will be higher pressure on the forward side than on the back side.
How many taxpayer dollars went to those CONnecticut men?
I thought they were cool, always buzzing around my yard. Then I put up feeders all around my deck.
Total disaster. Couldn’t sit out there, they fight for the nectar all around your head. Nectar also attracts Carolina brown wasps who built a huge nest in the house eaves.
Welcome nature to your home and it will kick your a$$.
I planted a Mimosa tree on the side of the house in the sun, they have a blast there. 🤗 So do all the bugs.
“Yea, well gee, I figured that out the first time I saw one. I think I was 3.”
Should’ve waited. Could hve got a million dollar grant for 3 seconds of work.
I heard that Camel-Ah is a pretty good hummer herself.
Have scientists figured out if Kamala Harris has semen poisoning?
Agreed, Uncle Al. Next they will study why sh*t st*nks.
I designed the Hummingbird.