Hummingbirds Employ Surprising Pump-Like Action To Extract Nectar
  • 9 years ago
Scientists recently determined that the hummingbird’s ability to quickly drain nectar from a flower stems from a pump-like activity occurring in the bird’s tongue.

Hummingbirds live fast-paced lives, doing everything from flying to eating at baffling speeds. 
Researchers knew the animals can drain all the nectar from a flower in under a second, but exactly how the feat is accomplished has been a mystery.
Scientist Alejandro Rico-Guevara and professor Margaret Rubega recently found that the ability stems from a pump-like activity occurring in the birds' tongues.
Prior to their discovery, it was believed that the dual-tube configuration