PARAKEETS THAT CAN SURVIVE A MONTH WITHOUT WATER

Wild parakeets live in the plains of Australia where it rarely rains. Since they meet their need for water from the seeds on which they feed, these birds can easily survive without drinking water for a month in very dry seasons. Water is vital to wild parakeets. For this reason, they can organise all their lives according to climatic conditions. For example, if water is insufficient, they stop breeding and begin to search for new places with water. As soon as they find a sufficiently big body of water, they begin to lay their eggs.

It is only by the inspiration of Allah that parakeets organise their lives in compliance with climatic conditions. Since the continuance of their species is essential, they do not take any risks and stop breeding at once. Our Lord, Who knows everything and is well aware of His creatures, inspires them to behave that wisely. In a verse, Allah says:

The seven heavens and the earth and everyone in them glorify Him. There is nothing which does not glorify Him with praise but you do not understand their glorification. He is All-Forbearing, Ever-Forgiving. (Surat al-Isra': 44)

THE STRUCTURE OF BIRDS' FEATHERS

The most important difference that distinguishes birds from other creatures is surely their ability to fly. Birds can fly thanks to their feathers, which in fact have a very special structure.

A bird's feather is a light structure that has lift force and can easily regain its original shape. If we examine a bird's feather under a microscope, we see a marvellous design. In the middle part of the feather is a hard central shaft having a vane of paired branches called barbs on either side. These barbs, whose lengths and softness vary, enable the bird to fly in the air.

As we examine in further detail, we encounter even more interesting structures. From each barb minute hairs called "barbules" project. Barbules cannot be seen with the naked eye. On these barbules are little hooks. The barbules are interlocked by these hooks like a zipper.

The hooks are clamped together like the two rows of a zipper. The barbules held together by hooks are so close to each other that even smoke cannot escape through them. If these hooks are somehow unlocked, it is enough for the bird to shake itself or to put its feathers in order with its beak, to make the feathers return to their previous state.

In order to survive, birds should always keep their feathers clean, neat and ready for use. For the care of their feathers, they use the oil sacs that are at the bottom of their tails. They take some oil with their beak, and then clean and polish their feathers. In swimming birds, this oil prevents water from reaching their skin when they are in the water or in the rain.

Look at a bird's feather under a microscope, and you will see the interlocked and hooked structure of the feather.

In addition, birds can prevent loss of body heat by ruffling their feathers in cold weather. In hot weather, on the other hand, they keep their body cool by smoothing their feathers.

Each group of feathers in a particular part of the body has particular functions. For example the down feathers and the feathers that lie along the wings and tail have different structures. Large tail feathers are used for steering as well as for braking. As the wing feathers are spread wide while flying, the surface area is expanded and lift force increased. When the bird flaps its wing downwards, these feathers come closer and prevent air passing through. As the wings move up, the feathers open wide and permit air to pass through them. In order to maintain their ability to fly, birds moult their feathers at certain times of the year. Large torn or worn out feathers that do not function properly any more are renewed quickly.

This detailed structure exists in the feathers of every bird. All of them have the features that enable birds to fly. One who reflects on what is explained here and uses his intellect will notice the design in birds and will understand that this design is Allah's creation. Even thinking about this attribute of birds alone is enough to understand how mighty Allah is.

It is related in the Qur'an that believers reflect on the creation of Allah:

The kingdom of the heavens and earth belongs to Allah. Allah has power over all things. In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of night and day, there are Signs for people with intelligence: those who remember Allah, standing, sitting and lying on their sides, and reflect on the creation of the heavens and the earth (and say): 'Our Lord, You have not created this for nothing. Glory be to You! So safeguard us from the punishment of the Fire. (Surah Al 'Imran: 189-191)

BIRDS' TECHNIQUES OF SOARING

It requires a great deal of energy to fly. However, birds are small creatures and the energy they can store in their bodies is limited. Birds obtain most of the energy they need by means of applying special flying techniques. Gliding in the air without flapping their wings is one of the techniques that they use most. For example, vultures employ a special method based on rising heat waves in order to glide at a convenient altitude. Gliding from one heat wave to another, they can fly over a vast area in a day.

Migratory birds, too, make use of gliding techniques to save energy. Storks, for example, use heat waves to fly during migration. White storks of central Europe migrate to spend winter in Africa and cover a distance of about 7,000 kilometres (4,350 miles). If they were to flap their wings all the way to their destination, they would have to take four breaks during the journey. Yet, white storks complete their journey in three weeks by gliding between the heat waves for 6-7 hours a day and thus saving most of their energy.

Since the sea warms up more slowly than the land, there are no heat waves over the sea. For this reason, migratory birds prefer to migrate over land instead of making long sea journeys. You might have seen flocks of storks that cover the sky at certain times of the year. This is because storks, too, prefer to migrate over land. You may not be aware of the fact that there isn't any warm air over the sea but storks know it very well.

On the other hand, albatrosses, seagulls and other sea birds save energy by using air currents caused by high waves. These sea birds that fly over the waves benefit from the lift force of the air that turns upwards.

As seen in the examples given here, all birds are cognisant of which techniques they will use, where they will go and which route they will take. No confusion arises for those that fly by using warm air currents and those that fly by using air currents caused by the waves. This is because Allah inspires every creature with the knowledge it needs. In the Qur'an, Allah points out birds' movements in the air and states:

Do you not see that everyone in the heavens and earth glorifies Allah, as do the birds with their outspread wings? Each one knows its prayer and glorification. Allah knows what they do. (Surat an-Nur: 41)

THE WATER BIRD THAT CUTS THROUGH THE WATER LIKE SCISSORS

Those who listen well to what is said and follow the best of it, they are the ones whom Allah has guided, they are the people of intelligence. (Surat az-Zumar: 18)

Most birds cannot fly if their wings come into contact with water because water causes their feathers to stick to each other, which disables the bird moving its wings. However, although aquatic birds dive into water all day, nothing happens to them. You must be wondering how and why, are you not?

There is a special oil on the wings of water birds that prevents feathers from sticking to each other when wet. This is how these birds can dive into water without trouble. However, the skimmer, a water bird species, lacks this oil. Therefore, unlike other water birds, it cannot dive into water to hunt. How, then, will it find its nourishment when it cannot enter water?

Allah, the All-Merciful, All-Compassionate, has created the lower beak of the bird longer than its upper beak. The tip of the longer, lower beak is sensitive to touch. In addition, the wings of this aquatic bird have been designed so perfectly that it can glide just above the sea for a long time without flapping its wings at all. While flying, it breaks the surface of the water using its lower beak like scissors. As soon as the sensitive tip of the beak touches its prey, the bird immediately notices and catches it. This bird is one of the evidences that Allah is the Originator of all creatures.

CUTTLEFISH LIKE JET ENGINES

Although named a "fish", unlike other fish, the cuttlefish do not have bones in their bodies. You may have wondered how these boneless fish move along in water. Indeed, cuttlefish use quite an unusual means of locomotion. The body of a cuttlefish, which is composed of soft tissues, is covered with a thick layer of skin. By means of muscles below this layer, a cuttlefish collects water within its body and moves by squirting this water out.

The system of the cuttlefish based on squirting water is quite complicated. There is a pocket-like opening on each side of the creature's head. The water is drawn through these openings into a cylinder-like cavity. Then the cuttlefish jets out this water from a narrow pipe immediately under its head with great pressure. This enables the animal to move swiftly in the opposite direction and flee from predators because it can accelerate suddenly. You may be wondering what would happen if the speed was not high enough. In this case the cuttlefish sprays a dark coloured liquid produced in the animal's body towards its enemy. This spray of ink confuses the predator for a few seconds, which is enough for the cuttlefish to flee. It flees from the place and disappears in the spray of ink.

As all other living creatures, this feature of the cuttlefish is the creation of Allah, the Creator of everything. Allah informs us that there is no other god besides Him :

Exalted be Allah, the King, the Real. There is no god but Him, Lord of the Noble Throne. (Surat az-Zumar: 10)

GREYLAG GEESE

Everything in the heavens and the earth belongs to Allah. He knows what you are engaged upon. On the Day when they are returned to Him, He will inform them of what they did. Allah has knowledge of all things. (Surat an-Nur: 64)

Greylag geese can fly at high altitudes of about 8,000 metres (5 miles). This is in fact quite a difficult task since many creatures cannot breathe at such altitudes because of the deficiency in the amount of oxygen available at high altitudes. This deficiency makes respiration difficult. That is the reason why we can hardly breathe when we climb up a high mountain. Flying at an altitude that has a rarefied atmosphere, the bird needs to flap its wings faster. In order to move its wings more, the bird will expend more oxygen, which makes the situation even more difficult for it. However, these birds do not experience any difficulty even while they are flying at altitudes of thousands of meters. That is thanks to the special creation of their lungs, which make the most of the rare oxygen at high altitudes.

Functioning in a different way than those of other creatures, these birds' lungs enable them to obtain more energy from the rarefied atmosphere. And this is one of the signs of Allah's perfect creation.

A MATCHLESS SECURITY SYSTEM

Some creatures living near the surface of water are susceptible to dangers both from above the water and from beneath them. These creatures have an incredible means of security; they are transparent. As you can see in the pictures, they are unnoticed by their enemies. Likewise, crab, shrimp and fish larvae are created almost completely transparent.

Obviously these creatures could not possibly have considered the environment they lived in and then adopted an appropriate colour. Besides, how would these animals know that they need to be protected? How could they be aware of the presence of predators and conclude that they would not be noticed if they were transparent?

Allah, Who creates everything perfectly, created these little defenceless creatures with a perfect design. Allah watches over and protects all things. Our compassionate Lord created a particular way of protection for each being. And these creatures are protected from predators thanks to their transparency. Allah creates all creatures completely and perfectly. It is related in verses that Allah's creation is matchless:

He Who created the seven heavens in layers. You will not find any flaw in the creation of the All-Merciful. Look again - do you see any gaps? Then look again and again. Your sight will return to you dazzled and exhausted! (Surat al-Mulk: 3-4)