Wendy Hochberg, age 11, of St. Paul Minnesota, for her question:
How do flying fishes fly?
Some folk think that flying fishes have flappable fins and others are sure that they sail through the air like rigid gliders. Others suspect that these fairy like creatures vibrate their gauzy fins as they fly. If you take sides in this fishy debate, chances are you will find yourself in the midst of a heated dispute.
The average flight of a flying fish lasts about ten seconds, during which time he travels just a few hundred yards in frenzied excitement. This does not give you much of an opportunity to observe how he does it. What's more, the scene is just above a warm, wavy ocean where sparkling sunbeams tend to blur one's vision. With just a quick glance, you might feel certain that the airborne fish flaps his gauzy butterfly wings. But you could be wrong.
Flapping is very hard work and a bird needs a chestful of mighty muscles to beat his wings. Scientists remind us that a flying fish uses fins, not wings, and that he has no suitable muscles to beat them up and down. This should prove that his fins are unflappable.
However, many observers continue to insist that the fishy fins flutter and vibrate above the surface of the sun sparkling sea. What's more, ordinary movie cameras seem to agree with this theory. But up to date scientists do not agree. They have used special stroboscopic photography to prove that the unflappable flying fish is a glider.
These special cameras photograph in the fraction of a second. A series of these pictures shows every slight change in the position of a moving object. Every motion of the flying fish has been revealed by this super fast, super precise photography. His tail may swish or vibrate, a bouncing wavelet or a playful breeze may tip his silvery blue body. He may bank, turn or dive. But he neither flaps nor vibrates his fins.
Schools of flying fishes live near the surfaces of most warm and tropical seas. Some Pecies have one pair of enlarged gliding fins, others have two pairs. One of the largest and most beautiful is the 18 inch flying fish that lives off the coast of California. He has a pair of extra large pectoral fins, where his shoulders should be, and a second pair of slightly smaller pelvic fins, where his hips should be.
Experts suspect that the flying fish takes to the air to escape hungry foes in the waters below. He starts his take off with a fast swim, full speed ahead and tilted upward. His tail continues to swish the water as he surfaces and becomes airborne and his momentum carries him 500 yards or more, skimming above the wades.
He may take off at 40 miles per hour but he soon loses speed and drops back into the water. He may return with a graceful dive or splash down on his back. Meantime, dozens of his kinfolk are darting in and out of the sea looking like a host of super sized dragonflies glinting in the sunshine.