Effects of wetting of insulation of bird and mammal coats

Webb, Diane; King, James R.

doi:10.1016/0306-4565(84)90020-2

Cited by 58 publications

(43 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…As the thermal conductivity of water is some 25 times higher than that of air, such shaking may help avoid excessive heat loss, as well as to impede pathogen growth on the skin [1][2][3]. In smaller species with higher surface area : volume ratios, water load on the body may also reduce locomotor performance [4], and may be particularly relevant for volant taxa given the much higher energetic costs of flapping flight relative to cursorial locomotion [5].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aerial shaking performance of wet Anna's hummingbirds

Ortega-Jimenez

Dudley

2011

J. R. Soc. Interface.

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External wetting poses problems of immediate heat loss and long-term pathogen growth for vertebrates. Beyond these risks, the locomotor ability of smaller animals, and particularly of fliers, may be impaired by water adhering to the body. Here, we report on the remarkable ability of hummingbirds to perform rapid shakes in order to expel water from their plumage even while in flight. Kinematic performance of aerial versus non-aerial shakes (i.e. those performed while perching) was compared. Oscillation frequencies of the head, body and tail were lower in aerial shakes. Tangential speeds and accelerations of the trunk and tail were roughly similar in aerial and non-aerial shakes, but values for head motions in air were twice as high when compared with shakes while perching. Azimuthal angular amplitudes for both aerial and non-aerial shakes reached values greater than 1808 for the head, greater than 458 for the body trunk and slightly greater than 908 for the tail and wings. Using a feather on an oscillating disc to mimic shaking motions, we found that bending increased average speeds by up to 36 per cent and accelerations of the feather tip up to fourfold relative to a hypothetical rigid feather. Feather flexibility may help to enhance shedding of water and reduce body oscillations during shaking.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aerial shaking performance of wet Anna's hummingbirds

Ortega-Jimenez

Dudley

2011

J. R. Soc. Interface.

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“…Precipitation, including snow, is most likely to occur early in the season (Fig. 1), and this must exacerbate energetic stresses because the wetting associated with precipitation doubles thermoregulatory costs (Webb and King 1984). Cold and wet weather thus requires greater food intake, but for aerial insectivores like kingbirds, the availability of flying insects is severely and negatively affected by precipitation, low temperatures, and wind (Bryant 1973;Hespenheide 1975;Kingsolver 1983;Nooker et al 2005;Visscher and Seeley 1982).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As a consequence, individuals experience high thermoregulatory costs (Webb and King 1984) and temporary, but often life-threatening, food shortages (Brown and Brown 1998;Nolan 1978;Zumeta and Holmes 1978). Evolutionary theory predicts that benefits must exist to balance these costs, and indeed, earlyarriving birds often experience the highest reproductive success (Bêty et al 2004;Lozano et al 1996;Møller 1994;Neto and Gosler 2005;Potti 1998).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Reproductive correlates of spring arrival date in the Eastern Kingbird Tyrannus tyrannus

et al. 2010

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Harsh weather in spring presents energetic challenges to birds during migration and upon reaching the breeding grounds, and yet, birds often arrive well before breeding begins. We studied a population of Eastern Kingbirds in eastern Oregon from 2004 through 2007. Early arriving kingbirds faced the poorest weather conditions, and therefore we predicted that benefits of early arrival must exist to balance the presumed costs. Earlyarriving kingbirds were more likely to both acquire a high-quality territory and to replace nests after failure. Early-arriving birds also bred early, and early breeding led to larger clutches and greater production of young. Earlyarriving males also sired more extra-pair young than later arrivers. Our data suggest that arrival date is in part influenced by individual quality, and that arrival date has reproductive consequences, with the primary benefits of early arrival being the acquisition of a high-quality territory, early breeding, and increased probability of replacing failed initial nests.

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“…Coccidiosis causes malabsorption of nutrients, diarrhoea, steatorrhoea, with subsequent fluid loss and electrolyte imbalance [51] – leading to morbidity and mortality. Weather front systems bringing wet conditions in the spring compound the stresses on vulnerable cubs by exposing them to additional hypothermic stress [52].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Multi-Metric Approach to Investigate the Effects of Weather Conditions on the Demographic of a Terrestrial Mammal, the European Badger (Meles meles)

et al. 2013

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Models capturing the full effects of weather conditions on animal populations are scarce. Here we decompose yearly temperature and rainfall into mean trends, yearly amplitude of change and residual variation, using daily records. We establish from multi-model inference procedures, based on 1125 life histories (from 1987 to 2008), that European badger (Meles meles) annual mortality and recruitment rates respond to changes in mean trends and to variability in proximate weather components. Variation in mean rainfall was by far the most influential predictor in our analysis. Juvenile survival and recruitment rates were highest at intermediate levels of mean rainfall, whereas low adult survival rates were associated with only the driest, and not the wettest, years. Both juvenile and adult survival rates also exhibited a range of tolerance for residual standard deviation around daily predicted temperature values, beyond which survival rates declined. Life-history parameters, annual routines and adaptive behavioural responses, which define the badgers’ climatic niche, thus appear to be predicated upon a bounded range of climatic conditions, which support optimal survival and recruitment dynamics. That variability in weather conditions is influential, in combination with mean climatic trends, on the vital rates of a generalist, wide ranging and K-selected medium-sized carnivore, has major implications for evolutionary ecology and conservation.

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Effects of wetting of insulation of bird and mammal coats

Cited by 58 publications

References 8 publications

Aerial shaking performance of wet Anna's hummingbirds

Aerial shaking performance of wet Anna's hummingbirds

Reproductive correlates of spring arrival date in the Eastern Kingbird Tyrannus tyrannus

A Multi-Metric Approach to Investigate the Effects of Weather Conditions on the Demographic of a Terrestrial Mammal, the European Badger (Meles meles)

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