Yes, birds do get struck by lightning, although it's not very common. When birds are flying during a storm, they are exposed to lightning strikes and thus can get hit directly. Birds will typically avoid flying in a thunderstorm. They prefer to find hiding spots, such as in bushes, trees and tall grasses.

Yes, birds do occasionally get struck by lightning, although it is an extremely rare occurrence in the wild. Most birds have a natural instinct to seek low-level shelter—such as thick bushes, dense trees, or burrows—when they sense the barometric pressure drops associated with an approaching thunderstorm. In 2026, researchers note that the greatest risk occurs when birds are caught mid-flight in large flocks (like starlings in a murmuration) or if they are roosting in a tall tree that becomes a direct strike point. Because birds in flight are not grounded, they are somewhat protected from the "step potential" that kills land animals, but a direct hit or flying through an ionized channel of air is almost always fatal due to the extreme heat and electrical current. Interestingly, many migratory species have evolved to "ride the gust front" ahead of storms to avoid the most dangerous electrical activity altogether.