Why we need Team Bird in the Winter Olympics

The Winter Olympics needs some more avian action, and we know who we want on our team. With many birds offering their own special skills, we’re sure Team Bird will be going for gold! 

Navigating icy and snowy slopes with ease is a key skill for success in Alpine skiing, and one group of birds has been training up for this event for years! Emperor Penguins are big fans of ‘tobogganing’ (that’s sliding around on their bellies on the ice, it’s a heck of a lot quicker and more fun than walking, and they only have tiny legs anyway). That means they’re not scared of ice and snow, or high speeds, and crashing is just an occupational hazard and a bit of fun. And until toboggan is an Olympic sport, we know Emperor Penguins will be a sure-fire hit on the ski slopes. 

The skeleton involves jumping face down on a sled, then descending the icy track. We need a fearless athlete who isn’t scared of diving downwards at great speeds – so enter the Peregrine Falcon. They’re not just the UK’s largest falcon, they’re also our secret weapon – the fastest animal on earth! They can reach speeds of 320 km/hr (200 mph) on their hunting dive, which means they’re not scared of a death-defying descent at speed. 

We reckon with that lack of fear they’re well on the way to adding Team Bird to the medal table. 

Move over Eddie the Eagle (nice name by the way) – the real ski jump superstars are the ones who can use the best ‘V-style,’ and that means the ones who can boast a big wingspan will definitely make the podium. 

So we’re entering our biggest hitter – the Wandering Albatross. With a wingspan of up to 3.5 metres, we know that they’re the ones to beat the jump, and they have the largest wingspan of any living bird in the world, perfect for gliding effortlessly over the open ocean, and sliding off the ski jump to make gold. 

This is an intense team sport, so not the thing for individualists such as Robins! It’s fast, it’s furious, and it’s a teeny bit dangerous – so we need a slightly frenzied flock. Enter the Starlings. They can be a bit scruffy, messy, and noisy, especially when it comes to grabbing food, but give them half a chance and they can work together and create something magical. Have you seen a Starling murmuration? Ice hockey is just a murmuration with a bit more speed and jeopardy, where they all work together and really know their place.  

Figure skating is as much about being artistic as it is technical. It’s not enough to look great on the ice, it must be precise and to a high standard as well. There’s only one bird for the job and that’s the Gannet, known as the ‘Queen of the Sea.’ They’re beautiful, they’re elegant, they command the sea more majestically than any other seabird, and they’re also pretty effective hunters. So whilst they’re entertaining everyone on the ice, we know they’ve also got their beady eyes on gold. 

Curling requires a bird with an obsession with stones, so enter the Carrion Crow. They’ve been frequently observed dropping stones on things, for strange reasons only clear to other Carrion Crows. It just needs a quick bit of training to get them into the horizontal plane, and we’re sure that sliding large stones towards a ‘house’ will be just the thing for them. Particularly if they can invent a mischievous way to beat their opponents, and get away with it.  

The surfer dude of the Winter Olympics has to be the Crested Tit. Just check out its hairdo. That’s the most important bit. Everything else can come later! They’re also pretty good at clinging to trunks and hanging from branches, giving them all the core strength they need to master those snowboarding moves, from wildcats to tame dogs and backslide boardsides. 

Head to an RSPB nature reserve to see some our avian athletes limbering up! Our network of over 170 nature reserves around the UK are some of the best places to see birds and other wildlife.