Do any species of bird hiccup? If so, why would they do this?

Are there any species of bird that hiccup? If so, why would they do this?

Richard Jones, Avian Veterinary Services, Northwich, Cheshire, UK

Hiccups are caused by involuntary contractions of the diaphragm. Birds don’t have a diaphragm, so it is technically impossible for a bird to hiccup in this manner.

Birds’ lungs don’t expand and contract as they do in mammals. They are essentially a pair of spongy structures that are ventilated by a series of air sacs. When the bird “breathes in”, the intercostal muscles between its ribs raise the sternum to suck air into the air sacs. I haven’t come across hiccup-like spasms in birds, but I suppose it could…