What is the highest height a bird can fly?

There are many impressive things about birds. Some fly for miles without ever flapping their wings; some live for more than half a century; some are real rainbows. But when you look at birds flying high in the distance, have you ever wondered just how high they can fly?

The species that holds the record for the highest flight of any bird is the Rapel’s Vulture (Dancing grass).

In 1973, a Rppell’s vulture hit a commercial aircraft at 11,300 meters (37,000 feet) over Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa. Despite damage to one of its engines, the plane landed successfully. Unfortunately, the bird was not so lucky. Only 5 complete feathers and 15 partial feathers remained, enough to confirm the identity of the species and confirm this incredible feat, but probably of little comfort to any friends of the deceased.

We kid, but sadly this bird probably does have friends and maybe even a significant other. They are very social and are thought to form monogamous partnerships, with both parents helping to care for the pups during their first 150 days of life.

Vultures are native to the Sahel region of Africa, spanning a large swath of land between the Sahara Desert and the Sudanese savanna. The condor’s habitat covers countries such as Zimbabwe, Senegal and Ethiopia. They also appear from time to time in Spain on the Mediterranean coast.

But unfortunately, this type of visit may become even rarer in the future, as the Rapel’s vulture is listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List. Like many similar African birds, they are threatened by habitat loss, hunting and reduced supplies of carrion, their only food source.

Poisoning is also a big problem, especially in East Africa. This mainly comes from a pesticide called carbofuran, but the charity BirdLife International also highlights the role of the drug diclofenac. The anti-inflammatory drug is available for veterinary treatment, but can be fatal to Rappell’s vultures if they ingest the carcasses of animals that have been given the drug. Surprisingly, you’d be surprised when you consider that they can happily eat meat infected with anthrax and botulism.

If you’re lucky enough to see a Lapeer’s condor in the flesh, it’s a sight you won’t soon forget. These majestic birds can reach a height of nearly one meter (33-38 inches) and have a distinctive featherless head. The whole head is inserted into the prey.

Their powerful wings span more than 2 meters (7-8 feet), but they rarely use them when flying. Even though they don’t give commercial pilots a headache, Lapeer’s condors often reach impressive altitudes, using powerful thermals to soar above the ground and scan for prey.

It is possible, even probable, that the events of 1973 were an anomaly. There are reasons why you don’t typically see birds flying with airliners at cruising altitudes, and most of them have to do with oxygen.

Other contenders for altitude include regular cranes (crane), it was recorded at 10,000 meters (32,800 ft) while dodging eagles in the Himalayas, while the bar-headed goose (Indian Goose), it was found at a maximum altitude of 7,300 meters (24,000 feet), and had oversized lungs to cope with the lack of oxygen.

Still, BBC Wildlife reports that even with modern tracking technology, we have no record of other birds approaching the Rapel’s Buzzard, so its crown appears to be safe for now.