Do chickens fly? A very particular characteristic of chickens is that, although they are birds, they don't have the ability to fly, at least not like sparrows or pigeons do, for example. Do you know why chickens don't fly? Can there be birds that are not flightless?
For many, chickens are very close birds and, therefore, they decide to adopt them as a pet. Likewise, if you have had the opportunity to live, spend the summer or visit a town or rural areas, it is very common to find chicken coops in practically all houses because they give eggs. If you've seen them and wondered why why chickens don't fly, keep reading and discover the answer in this article on our site.
Are chickens birds?
Chickens are birds belonging to the order Galliformes, which is included in the class of birds. This order includes other well-known species such as partridges or turkeys, all of which have common ancestors[1] As a curious fact about the origin of the hen, the first species of chicken is considered to have been the bankiva rooster of Southeast Asia, whose scientific name is Gallus gallus bankiva. It is established that it was as a result of this species that all the breeds of domestic and wild chickens of today arise.
That being said, yes, chickens are birds but they can't fly long distances iecan flap their wings and some species are capable of taking off from the ground for a few seconds, making explosive flights. However, they do not stay in the air like common birds do.
They are not the only ones, because without a doubt we will meet the penguins, other flightless birds, or the ostriches, which also do not have the ability to fly. In this article we detail several birds that are unable to fly: Birds that do not fly - Characteristics and 10 examples. All these birds have several things in common, but the most important is that in all of them the ability to fly disappeared as the species evolved, that is, their phylogenetic ancestors did fly.
Why don't chickens fly if they are birds?
But how can a bird not fly? Isn't it an essential requirement for birds to be able to fly? Well the answer is no. Although it is true that the most common thing is for birds to fly, it is not an essential requirement from the taxonomic point of view that they fly to be considered as birds. Other factors are required, such as: having feathers, having wings, whether or not they are useful for flight, having a beak or being an animal with lungs.
Regarding the question why chickens don't fly if they are birds, the answer is found in their wings The wings of the Chickens have a very different morphology from those of flying birds, being more robust, therefore heavier and much smaller compared to their bodies. In addition to this, chickens do not fly because they do not have a key piece, the keel, a fundamental muscle for flight, since it is the one that allows the flapping of their wings. Finally, these birds have denser and more abundant plumages, which also makes them too heavy to fly.
Why do chickens have small wings?
Evolutionary studies on vestigial organs refer in many cases to the wings of flightless birds. A vestigial organ is one that, during evolutionary changes, has stopped fulfilling the function it previously fulfilled, remaining as a sign that it was useful at some point. Flightless birds have wings that do not allow them to fly, although they can use them for other actions, such as social or defense rituals.
Because of all of the above, the wings of chickens are small in proportion to their body, because as the species has evolved, the wings have ceased to be vitals For chickens it is more important, for example, to have long legs that allow them to run and even jump, this being more useful for their survival. In addition, these animals develop their entire life on the ground, since that is where they find food, and they do not need to migrate, so for them the wings are a completely dispensable part of their body.
