by Jobie Weetaluktuk

Created on: July 31, 2007

There are quiet a number of birds that 'fly' under water. At least they flap with wings for mobility while diving. The various species of penguins is a good and obvious example. Penguins are very strong swimmer and truly marine birds. They feed on fish, squid, or krill and can dive pretty deep. Some penguins dive as deep as 18 metres of 60 feet. They flap with wings for propulsion and apparently are quiet maneuverable.

There are other sea birds that 'fly' under water. The murres, auks, guillemots are also great divers and fly underwater. These birds also feed on fish, squids, krill and the foods of the sea. These birds however do fly in the classical sense, that is through the air. On some of the breeding islands you can go on the cliffs look into the water and see these birds dive. They will flap their wings while submerged. It is amusing and incredible thing to see birds fly under water.

It is incredible that birds, which we normally think of as fragile can even dive. Water is dense and the further down you go, the pressure of the water increases. Not only does these birds deal with the pressure, they are also well insulated from the cold water. They can also see pretty well under water, or so we assume. It is incredible range in terms of sight. From the bright sunny surface to pick out moving fish in the depth.

Loons can also flap their wings under water though their webbed feet are very powerful propellers. They will flap their wings for maneuverability and for a burst of speed. Loons are also water feeders, so they need to be quick to overtake fish.

Of course there are the penguins. They even fly through the air as the flap their wings below the surface and make surface at sufficient speed to get temporarily get airborne. They takes those seconds for a breath of fresh air, before diving and flying into the dark depth. Some birds are so incredible so as to fly under water.

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