Can birds fly over Mt Everest?

In 1953, a mountain climber reported seeing a bar-headed goose (Anser indicus) soar over the peak of Mount Everest. Now, researchers who raised 19 of the geese—named for the black stripes on the backs of their heads—have shown the birds really do have what it takes to fly so high.

Can birds fly over mountains?

The bar-headed goose is famous for reaching extreme altitudes during its twice-yearly migrations across the Himalayas. These geese have been tracked flying as high as 7,270 meters up, and mountaineers have anecdotally reported seeing them fly over summits around Mount Everest (that are over 8,000 meters tall).

Which birds migrate over the Himalayas?

Many birds wintering in the Indian subcontinent fly across the Himalayas during migration, including Bar-headed Geese (Anser indicus), Demoiselle Cranes (Anthropoides virgo) and Ruddy Shelducks (Tadorna ferruginea).

What’s the highest altitude a bird can fly?

Highest Flying Birds

1. Rüppell’s Griffon Vulture – 37,000 feet.
2. Common crane – 33,000 feet.
3. Bar-headed goose – 27,825 feet.
4. Whooper swan – 27,000 feet.
5. Alpine chough – 26,500 feet.
6. Bearded vulture – 24,000 feet.
7. Andean condor – 21,300 feet.
8. Mallard – 21000 feet.

Can a bird fly as high as a plane?

The two highest-flying bird species on record are the endangered Ruppell’s griffon vulture, which has been spotted flying at 37,000 feet (the same height as a coasting commercial airplane), and the bar-headed goose, which has been seen flying over the Himalayas at heights of nearly 28,000 feet.

Why can birds fly over the Himalayas?

Bar-headed geese can reach high altitudes during their migration across the Himalayas and Tibetan plateau because they can continue supporting the metabolic costs of flight as the air becomes extremely hypoxic.

How high can birds fly before running out of oxygen?

Birds such as the Ruppell’s Vulture can fly up to 37,000 feet before it gets too tired to fly any higher. If birds find difficulty in breathing at extremely high altitudes, they will just fly lower and avoid dying from low oxygen in the blood, known as hypoxia, altogether.