Why don’t birds get electrocuted on power lines?

Question

I was sitting by the window the other day and noticed a few birds perched comfortably on high-voltage power lines. Out of curiosity, I started wondering—why don’t they get electrocuted?

I know those lines carry thousands of volts, so logically, it seems dangerous. Yet the birds seem completely unaffected. Is it because they’re small, or is there something about how electricity works that makes it safe for them?

Neeraj Dev · Answer

That's a great observation and a very common question. The reason birds don’t get electrocuted while sitting on high-voltage power lines has to do with how electricity flows.

Electricity needs a path to flow—from a higher voltage point to a lower voltage point (or ground). When a bird perches on a single wire, both of its feet are at the same electrical potential. Since there's no difference in voltage between the two contact points, there's no current flowing through the bird’s body, which is what causes electrocution.

However, if the bird were to touch two wires at different voltages at the same time, or a wire and a grounded object (like a pole or transformer), then electricity would flow through it, and it could be fatal.

So, it's not about the bird’s size—it’s about the fact that it’s only touching one wire and not providing a path for current to flow through.