Mobile phone captures pigeon keeping up with 90km/h traffic on Pacific Motorway on Gold Coast before taking Ormeau exit
PEOPLE see some strange sights on their daily commute - but a pigeon "hauling ass" along a Queensland motorway could be one of the strangest.
Gold Coast
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PEOPLE see some strange sights on their daily commute - but a pigeon "hauling ass" along a Queensland motorway could be one of the strangest.
The energetic bird was spotted travelling southbound on the M1 near Coomera, reaching speeds of about 90km/h.
The plucky little bird appears aware of the road rules, switching from the middle lane to the left-hand lane to allow faster-moving cars to pass.
After keeping up the gruelling pace for at least 40 seconds, the feathered road warrior appeared to have had enough, veering off the highway to take the Ormeau exit.
The incredible mobile-phone footage was captured by Joseph Alaimo from the passenger seat of his mate's ute as they travelled home to Runaway Bay after finishing work.
"Basically it was flying pretty much in front of us for about 5 minutes along the motorway," Mr Alaimo said.
"It was weaving in and out of traffic the whole time and almost got hit by another car.
"We were amazed at how fast it was flying and I just had to film it."
James Cook University bird behaviour Professor Glen Chilton said it’s quite common for pigeons to travel at high speeds.
“When it comes to birds, pigeons are the muscle men,” he said.
“First of all, they’re equipped with the most incredibly thick flight muscles.
“But they’re also capable of really long distance movements, which of course is why they’re used in pigeon racing.
“You can displace them for hundreds of kilometres and they race back at top speed.”
Aside from beating out a hasty flight path for long distances, Prof Chilton said they are also “incredible with navigation”, which probably explains why the bird knew which exit to take.
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