The natural world is vibrant. Some animals, although not birds, can fly skillfully. This article will learn about the five most interesting flying animals without wings.
- Flying Stingray
Mobula is a genus of fish in the family Myliobatidae (eagle rays) of the order Myliobatidae. You will be surprised because this fish can fly up to 2m out of the water like a bird. These rays have a width of up to 5.2m and a weight of up to 1 ton.
According to scientists, the flying stingray lives in a small range with a low reproduction rate. This makes them have to compete very fiercely to maintain the breed. When it comes to breeding season, flying rays will gather in large groups to swim together. Also, they will find ways to make friends with female rays during this time. To attract a mate, male stingrays will jump to the water’s surface as high as possible and then spread their “wings” to acrobatic in the most beautiful way and increase the contact area with the water to create a loud bang best.
- Flying snakes
Flying snakes have the scientific name: Chrysopelea is a genus of snakes in the subfamily Ahaetuliinae of the Colubridae family. They are a group of arboreal snakes from Southeast Asia (three Indochinese countries: Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia) to South Asia. Flying snakes mainly live in treetops. They jump from tree branches to escape predators or search for prey. They can fly to a distance of up to 24m.
Jake Socha, a biologist at Virginia Tech University, said: “Flying snakes have a unique body structure that can flatten themselves when they throw themselves. They also know how to tilt from side to side to catch the impact. The wind creates lift against gravity. Flying snakes can glide quickly at a speed of 8 to 10 meters per second.
- Flying squid
Flying squid, called Todarodes pacificus in Latin, belongs to the family Ommastrephidae. They live north of the Pacific Ocean, around the Sea of Japan, China, and Russia, south of the coast of Alaska and Canada, and in central Vietnam. Flying squid is blue and about 20cm long; they can fly 30m above the water’s surface to avoid enemies or save energy when migrating.
The flying squid has two fins and a faucet that takes water from one side and pushes the water out from the other. This is also the flying mechanism of squid. They fly backward with swaying tentacles, and their fins act as wings to help them balance in the air.
- Flying frog
The flying frog, also known as the gliding frog, is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. They are found in China, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Brunei, and Myanmar. Due to the muscular limbs, sizeable webbed skin between the fingers, and extensive skin folds on the arms. The flying frog can quickly drop down from a tall tree and land gently or glide from tree to tree. Other without any problems.
They are quite large in size; males are 72.3 – 85.5mm long, and females are 89.4 – 90.7mm. Male and female colors are the same. The appearance of flying frogs is often commensurate with the habitat and is subject to change. Species living in the tropics are often brightly colored, while species living in temperate climates are usually darker in color.
- Flying Squirrel
Flying squirrels are small marsupials native to Australia and New Guinea. The body structure allows flying squirrels to move from tree to tree quickly. They have a thin membrane extending on the sides, acting like paragliders. Thanks to that thin layer of plaque, squirrels can fly up to 60-100 meters in just a few seconds. However, they cannot take off on their own from the ground but must drop from a tree.
Flying squirrels often hide in the nest during the day and come out at night to find food and roam—most of the time they spend sleeping. Flying squirrels have smooth gray-blue coats and light and petite bodies. Flying squirrels can primarily hide in natural environments such as leaves and branches in the wild. They are challenging to detect with the naked eye.