Drinking Lucky Bird Duncan

Presenting the Second Law of Thermodynamics embodied in a "bird". Once it starts, the bird won’t stop drinking!

Be amazed by this science classic. A change in temperature begins a chain reaction that keeps the bird in perpetual motion. It endlessly dips in and out of a glass of water. A crowd pleaser offering hours of science entertainment. A favourite among all ages the drinking lucky bird is back and a great novelty gift idea for the person who has everything! 

*Not for young children. This is not a toy, it contains methylene chloride (an industrial paint solvent) encased in fragile glass.

Height: 18.5cm

Drinking Lucky Bird Explained:
There are no batteries or wires, what keeps the bird dipping to take a drink? It seems scientifically impossible. The energy to keep the bird moving actually comes from the surrounding air. Just wet the bird’s head to start the process. As the water evaporates, the head becomes cooler than the blue liquid in the body. This results in vapour condensation in the head. The condensation, in turn, evaporates and shrinks making the air pressure lower in the head than the body. The low air pressure causes the blue liquid to move up into the head, tipping the balance. The beak is submerged in water, the pressure equalizes and the fluid flows freely to the body, the now bottom-heavy bird tips upright and the process starts again.

Getting started:
Place a glass or cup full of cold tap water in front of the bird. The bird’s legs should be a little higher than the glass. Submerge the bird’s felt head in the water to get the bird moving on its own. If it does not start to bob, adjust the neck of the bird up and down until you get movement. The bird will bob then dip its beak into the glass of water every so often, the rate dependent on factors like the temperature of the room. But expect a dip to happen in under a minute.