“If you’re racist or anti-immigrant, then you shouldn’t watch the World Cup.” “Grudges are as vital to success as friendships.” “Reporters should be able to play the sport they’re reporting on.” “Restaurants gotta stop singing ‘Happy Birthday’ to adults.” “Leaf blowers should be eradicated.”
Kareem Rahma’s Subway Takes keeps our feeds brimming with steaming hot perspectives, and the latest episode of his wildly popular web series won’t leave my consciousness.
In a video posted on Monday, the journalist interviews musician Lucy Dacus on a boat off Rhode Island during Newport Folk Fest, asking for her hottest take.
Her answer? “Birds shouldn’t walk.”
Reader, I started. As a Londoner who constantly apologises to walking pigeons getting off the tube, my eyebrows ascended in distant concurrence. However, Rahma instantly disagrees.
“On what grounds?” asks Dacus. “On the ground!” responds the host.
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“If I’m on a sidewalk and I’m getting out of the way of a bird, that’s so f*cking rude,” says Dacus. “Get up there. They have the whole thing. There’s not even traffic.”
The pair then have a frank conversation about whether all birds are weird (yes), and whether birds’ legs are actually real or just small sticks (maybe). Curious about the science behind birds walking and whether their legs are, in fact, tiny sticks (remains a mystery), I had a small peruse online for answers.
Turns out, the Natural History Museum in London reckons, that we can trace bird-walking styles back to dinosaur fossils. According to the BBC’s Science Focus, birds that live in trees and hop around on branches “have evolved legs and feet that hop efficiently, so it makes sense to keep this up even when they are foraging on the ground.” New Zealand Geographic explains the amount of energy a bird uses while flying depends on the type of bird, so swimming might use less energy than flying for aquatic birds. Academic studies show that the amount of energy birds use during flight is “dominated by changes to their mass and airspeed.”
Now we know, I guess!
And sure, Dacus appreciates that “maybe flying expends more energy than walking,” but she’s still not having any of it.
“Are you trying to convince us that you’re like, one of the people? That you’re humble? Get up there.” she says.
As someone who will definitely be interrupted by a bird on my commute home, and will apologise profusely to them like I’ve offended their mother, I agree.
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