Opinions on longevity of birds exists much. Having asked how many there live the raven and an eagle, it is quite often possible to hear the answer read at A.S. Pushkin in "The captain's daughter". In the Kalmyk fairy tale that is told by Pugachev to Hryniv, is narrated about three hundred years of life of a raven deathbird and thirty three — the eagle sucking fresh blood.
According to ornithologists, crows and eagles live approximately equally — for 80 years. However such statistics concerns only life in bondage: without enemies, with a various diet, without hungry seasons, not always with incubation of baby birds. In the wild nature eagle and ravens the century contains at most 20 years. And yet the fairy tale about the longevity connected with drop in a diet has the reasons. In the bird's world the bird deathbird, the American signature stamp turkey living up to 118 years in the wild nature has one of the most long lives.
Sources of data on life of birds
Giving information on age limit of birds, biologists use results of observations in zoos and data of ornithological stations. The specialists ornithologists banding migratory birds and fixing year from a year the next migrations of the marked individuals keep the records giving the chance to define average life expectancy of birds. And though how many observers, are so much also opinions, average indicators disperse seldom.
Freedom value in the form of life is at liberty emphasized only with the person keeping the variety of types of inhabitants of the planet created by the nature. Bondage in the form of a cage or the open-air cage of a zoo — a guarantee of rest and full life with periodic observation at the veterinarian. Human guardianship cancels effect of laws of natural selection, and birds break records, living till 10-20 the bird's centuries which are released by it in the wild nature.
The most known facts about life expectancy of birdsRather short life distinguishes birds of group chicken, or kuroobrazny — hazel grouses, pheasants, black grouses, turkeys and other. Their "century" averages about 14 years. Among champions — the domestic hens who are occasionally passing for a 20-year threshold. Perepela - an alternative to hens on supply of eggs to a table of people - live for 5-6 years. Representatives of family of duck — geese, ducks, swans, brents — also have many chances to live up to 2 decades. Even in the wild nature the ornithologists noted cases of capture of 18-20-year-old wild ducks.
70-year life expectancy in a swan-shipuna zoo is noted by statistics. But in general duck and chicken differ on age limit a little.
Existence of birds of the American continent of a blue komarolovka and humming-bird — respectively is short 4 and 8 years. The age of a wild pigeon — is short 3-5 years while in dovecots and open-air cages of zoos of a bird there live on 15 and even 30 years. Eight years there live rooks, 9 — an ordinary swallow and a polar owl which appearance is known for the Boucle, Harry Potter's mail carrier. In bondage such owls live up to 28 years. Eagle owls are capable to live in the same conditions 60 years. Up to 24 years there live in cages singing favourites of the person — a canary.
There live house sparrows very little — 3-5 years, and their most part perishes on 1 year of life. However also the maximum term is recorded under favorable circumstances — 23 years.
. The bird, the higher her longevity potential is larger. Up to 25 years there live imperial penguins, the largest of not flying sea birds. From 7 to 20 years are allotted to other representatives of penguin family. Several years more in bondage there live an emu and cassowaries — up to 40 years, pink humming-birds and cranes can "celebrate" this anniversary on freedom. 75-year copies on a habitual 40-year background occur among the African ostriches. Not flying beskilevy birds of a kiwi, endemics of New Zealand, enjoy wingless existence for 50-60 years. Parrots zhako, a cockatoo and the red macaw quite often pass for a semicentennial boundary — observations of ornithologists also testify to it.