Hummingbirds are among the few birds able to fly backward with ease.

The longer version

Backward flight comes straight out of the hovering trick. Because the wing can be tilted so that air is pushed the other way, the bird rotates the whole stroke plane and the lift vector points behind it. A few seconds of reverse flight lets it back out of a flower without turning around first.

Most birds cannot copy this. Their wings are built for forward speed and stall when the airflow reverses. In birds, sustained reverse flight is otherwise rare. The ability depends on the hummingbird's shoulder joint, which allows far more rotation than a songbird's shoulder, and on the small body size that makes hovering possible at all.

Where this entry sits

Here you will find feathered trivia about flight, migration, nests, eggs, and the songs birds sing. Expect short surprising facts on penguins, owls, hummingbirds, and other familiar birds from gardens, forests, wetlands, and distant coastlines. The full list sits on the Birds page, where every entry is listed in order.