Hovering is the ability to stay suspended in the air without flapping wings. This ability allows animals to stay stationary in the air or control their movement through the air with precision. Hovering is an extremely useful ability for certain types of animals, allowing them to hunt, avoid predators, and maneuver with agility.
Insects That Can Hover
Many insects are able to hover, thanks to their small size, lightweight bodies, and fast beating wings. Insects that can hover well include:
- Bees
- Wasps
- Hoverflies
- Butterflies
- Moths
- Damselflies
- Dragonflies
- Hummingbirds
Bees and wasps use their ability to hover to inspect flowers and collect nectar and pollen. Butterflies and moths hover while they feed on flower nectar. Damselflies and dragonflies are predatory insects that can hover in place as they hunt for smaller insects to catch and eat.
Hoverflies are a type of fly that mimics the appearance of bees and wasps. They hover in place while feeding on flower nectar. Hummingbirds also beat their wings incredibly fast to create enough lift to hover. This allows them to feed on flower nectar while remaining suspended in front of the blossom.
Birds That Can Hover
In addition to hummingbirds, there are several other birds that are able to hover:
- Kestrels
- Kingfishers
- Terns
Kestrels are small falcons that often hover while hunting rodents and other small animals in grassy areas. The ability to remain stationary while searching for prey helps kestrels spot small movements revealing their next meal.
Kingfishers hover above water while searching for fish. When they spy their prey below, they plunge straight down to grab the fish in their beak. Terns hover above water while fishing as well. Their ability to remain still in midair in windy conditions requires great precision and wing control.
Mammals That Can Hover
The only groups of mammals capable of true hovering are certain species of bats. Bats such as the nectar-feeding Pallas’s long-tongued bat and the disk-winged bat can hover by flapping their wings in a horizontal figure-8 pattern, allowing them to remain stationary while licking up nectar from flowers with their long tongues.
Other species of bats are also able to hover briefly while capturing insects, drinking, or landing upside down. Their ability to generate lift with their wings allows them to perform this useful maneuver.
Some other gliding mammals like sugar gliders may appear to hover briefly, but they cannot maintain a stationary hover continuously like insects, birds, and bats.
Other Animals That Appear To Hover
There are some other animals that may seem to hover but do not have true hovering abilities:
- Hoverflies – Despite their name, hoverflies do not actually hover. They flap their wings very quickly, giving the appearance of hovering.
- Hummingbird hawkmoths – These large moth species looks and behaves very similarly to hummingbirds, but cannot maintain a stationary hover.
- Flying fish – Flying fish use their large pectoral fins to glide above the water’s surface but cannot stay still.
- Flying squirrels – Flying squirrels can glide long distances but cannot hover in one place.
These animals employ alternate methods like gliding, short bursts of very fast flapping, or apparent hovering. But only insects, birds, and bats can truly hover by generating enough lift to stay suspended motionless above the ground or water.
How Do Animals Hover?
Hovering animals have specialized adaptations that allow them to generate enough lift to counteract gravity and remain stationary in the air:
- Rapid wing beating – Insects, hummingbirds, and hovering bats flap their wings very quickly, sometimes up to 80 beats per second. This generates the lift and thrust needed to stay afloat.
- Precise wing control – Hovering requires delicate adjustments to wing angles and positions to remain balanced in place. Adaptations like crosslinked wings give these animals surgical control.
- Lightweight bodies – A small, lightweight body enables hovering animals to create lift more easily with less power required.
- Rotating wings – Hovering bats adjust the axis and angle of their wings to create horizontal figure-8 patterns that provide lift on both the downstroke and upstroke.
These adaptations allow hovering animals to produce enough aerodynamic force to overcome gravity and stay suspended. Their energy output must equal their body weight to maintain a stationary hover.
Challenges of Hovering
Although hovering provides many benefits, it also poses some challenges:
- It requires a very high metabolic rate and energy expenditure to beat the wings rapidly enough.
- The animal must be precisely balanced and cannot tolerate being overweight.
- Windy conditions make hovering more difficult to maintain stability.
- Hovering consumes a lot of energy and cannot usually be sustained for extended periods.
Due to these challenges, most hovering animals rely on this specialized ability only for short bursts when needed. Hovering demands immense precision and power output only mastered by certain insects, birds, and bats.
Benefits of Being Able to Hover
Despite the difficulties, being able to hover provides many advantages for certain species:
- Hunting – Remaining motionless while searching for prey allows kestrels, kingfishers, and other predators to spot and dive on their targets.
- Foraging – Bees, butterflies, hummingbirds can feed more effectively by hovering in front of flowers.
- Maneuverability – Hovering birds and insects can move freely in any direction with agility.
- Perching – Small hovering birds can remain suspended without landing on a surface.
- Mating – Some damselflies and winged insects hover during courtship displays.
For many species, the ability to hover is crucial for their way of life. It allows them to access food sources like nectar and makes them more successful hunters.
Fascinating Facts About Hovering Animals
Here are some fascinating facts about the incredible hovering abilities of certain animals:
- A bee’s wings beat around 230 times per second while hovering.
- Dragonflies can reach a remarkableHovering takes up a huge amount of energy. Bees use up to 60% of their energy just to keep hovering.
- Hummingbirds are the only birds that can fly backwards as well as hover.
- The Pallas’s long-tongued bat can hover motionless while inserting its 6 inch tongue into a flower.
- Kestrels have uneven wings which helps them hover in place while hunting.
- Hoverfly wings beat around 170 times per second, creating their buzzing sound.
The physics-defying abilities of hovering animals are astounding. Their specialized adaptations allow them to conquer the forces of gravity and remain suspended weightlessly in air.
In Conclusion
The ability to hover is unique to certain highly specialized groups of insects, birds, and bats. Their rapid, precise wing movements generate enough lift to keep their bodies suspended motionless above the ground. This grants hovering animals advantages for hunting, foraging, maneuvering, and mating. However, hovering demands immense energy and can only be sustained for short periods. Animals like bees, dragonflies, hummingbirds, kestrels, and pallas’s bats demonstrate fascinating adaptations that allow them to conquer gravity and utilize the remarkable ability to hover.