Can birds sleep while flying? A lot has been said about birds but what still keeps many wondering is if they can really sleep while flying. Yes, birds can sleep while flying but not all bird species. Usually, birds do sleep using only one part of their brain while the other section of the brain is kept awake.
Majority of bird species (frigate birds) prefer sleeping half brained so as to enable them stay alert of predators, however, frigate birds do not have natural predators in the sky. It is believed that frigate birds sleep half-brained to prevent mid-air collisions. Frigate birds often sleep only while on rising air currents that lets them to gain elevation and maintain them in the air without falling in the water.
Frigate birds are generally big slender, black plumaged seabirds and there are 5 species with the same appearance. The biggest frigate birds can be 114cm long and about 3 species still exist. Females are a little bigger and heavier than male frigate birds. They have short necks but long, slender hooked bills. Their flight wings comprise of 11 primary flight feathers, the 10th of the feathers is the longest while the 11th is notably the only vestigial feather. They also have about 23 secondary feathers and tails are deeply forked. When flying, frigate birds are facilitated by the trade winds.
They breed mainly on the remote oceanic island and in colonies of about 5000 birds and nest in 10-30 groups. Usually, breeding takes place anytime of the year but normally starts from the dry season or when there is plenty of food for them to feed on.
Day/night flyer.
For most birders that have spotted owls, they may have an idea that some birds really prefer to fly mainly at night. Owls and nighthawks like some nocturnal birds, they prefer waking up as the sun sets in order to start hunting at night. Daytime, nocturnal birds often look for safer areas and they close their eyes to block them from sunlight. Majority of the birds are diurnal which means, they stay awake during daytime and sleep during the night.
There are different categories of frigate birds and they include the magnificent frigatebird which lives in the Atlantic tropical areas, Ascension frigatebird/fregata aquila which can be spotted on the Boatswain Bird Island in the Tropical Atlantic Ocean. There is also Christmas frigatebird/Fregata andrewsi that often breeds along Christmas Island, Eastern Indian Ocean; The Great frigatebird in the Tropical Indian & Pacific Oceans while the lesser frigatebird lives in subtropical waters of Indian & Pacific Oceans.
Migratory bird species often use unihemispheric slow wave sleep in order to rest. They spend long hours flying and they do not have opportunity to make a stop in order to have some rest. Interestingly, the bird species that rely on unihemispheric slow wave are capable of sleeping & at the same time, they can navigate. The Alpine swift is the best example that is capable of flying non-stop for over 200 days, and sleep while flying.
