The Role of the Plumage in Heat Transfer Processes of Birds

Wolf, Blair O.; Walsberg, Glenn E.

doi:10.1093/icb/40.4.575

Cited by 93 publications

(145 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…In addition, we found that abdomen plumage temperatures decreased as plumage thickness increased, in agreement with studies of mounted specimens of passerines, quails and owls (McCafferty et al, 1997;Walsberg, 1988). The exact gradient of heat loss from the skin to the surface of the plumage is likely to be more complex than is currently understood, and may depend on the type, quality, number and placement of feathers overlying the skin (Wolf and Walsberg, 2000). Although plumage temperature measurements are not a substitute for direct measurements of brood patch temperature, they are valuable in studies such as this where the aim is to detect relative changes in heat output.…”

Section: Research Articlesupporting

confidence: 88%

Female but not male zebra finches adjust heat output in response to increased incubation demand

Hill

Lindström

McCafferty

et al. 2013

Journal of Experimental Biology

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In many incubating birds, heat transfer from parent to egg is facilitated by the brood patch, an area of ventral abdominal skin that becomes highly vascularised, swells and loses its down feathers around the time of laying. Only the female develops a brood patch in most passerine species, but males of some species can incubate and maintain the eggs at similar temperatures to females even without a brood patch. Here we used a novel application of infrared thermography to examine sex differences in parental care from a physiological perspective. Using incubating male and female zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata), a species in which the male lacks a brood patch, we measured the surface temperature of the ventral plumage overlying the abdomen and a reference area that does not contact the eggs (thorax) twice per pair. In half of the pairs, clutch size was experimentally enlarged between the two sets of measurements to increase incubation demand. We found that the temperature differential between abdomen and thorax plumage was greater in females than in males, and that abdomen plumage was warmer after clutch enlargement than before in females but not in males. These findings are consistent with morphological sex differences in brood patch development and suggest that male and female zebra finches differ in the way they regulate abdomen versus general body surface temperature in response to variation in incubation demand.

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Section: Research Articlesupporting

confidence: 88%

Female but not male zebra finches adjust heat output in response to increased incubation demand

Hill

Lindström

McCafferty

et al. 2013

Journal of Experimental Biology

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“…Furthermore seasonal changes in plumage weight suggest better insulation during colder months (Dawson and Carey 1976;Dawson et al 1983;Swanson 1991;Cooper 2002). Finally, feather structure could be trade against the number of feathers (Dawson and Carey 1976;Middleton 1986;Walsberg 1988;Lindström, et al 1993;Dawson et al 2000;Wolf and Walsberg 2000).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The allometry of number of feathers in birds changes seasonally

Møller

2015

Avian Res

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“…Typically, temperature will decrease even more throughout the night and will increase from dawn onwards. Therefore, considering that birds foraging on the ground exposed to wind have higher energy expenditure than resting birds (Zerba et al 1999), and that low temperatures increase the effects of wind on metabolic costs of thermoregulation (Wolf & Walsberg 2000, Bakken et al 2002, we conclude that nocturnal activity cannot be understood by only considering the physical environment.…”

Section: Al 2004mentioning

confidence: 82%

Habitat Change and Timing of Dusk Flight in the Eurasian Woodcock: A Trade-Off between Feeding and Predator Avoidance?

Braña

Prieto

González‐Quirós

2010

Annales Zoologici Fennici

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Braña, F., Prieto, L. & González-Quirós, P. 2010: Habitat change and timing of dusk flight in the Eurasian woodcock: a trade-off between feeding and predator avoidance? -Ann. Eurasian woodcock (Scolopax rusticola) over-wintering in northern Spain follows a pattern of daily movement from diurnal sites in woodlands to nighttime sites in grazed fields, congruent with previous reports on other European populations. Fields have a much higher abundance and biomass of earthworms, the main prey of woodcock, than woodlands, but are only used by birds at night, when they emerge about 30 minutes after sunset. Emergence time was quite uniform among fortnightly periods except for the second half of November when it was earlier, probably reflecting extended activity resulting from the higher energy requirements of migrating birds. Woodcock emergence time relative to sunset was negatively related to illumination, so that birds moved earlier when the sky was overcast. Also, birds tended to move earlier at low air temperatures, a pattern which is to be predicted since woodcock have higher energy requirements at low temperatures because of the increased cost of thermoregulation. Emerging late, at low light intensity, avoids exposure to raptors but results in reduced energy gains and therefore the timing of moving to feeding fields may be modified by energy considerations. We discuss the idea that there is a divergent spatio-temporal gradient of food and safety between woodlands and fields and, therefore, that predation risk is an important determinant of the timing of evening emergence of over-wintering woodcock. Thus, their daily activity cycle would reflect a trade-off between feeding and predator avoidance. Special features of the visual fields of the woodcock, allowing detection of predators at long distances, and chemoreceptors in the bill enabling detection and capture of prey by probing using non visual cues, comprise adaptations that facilitate successful feeding at night with reduced predation risk.

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The Role of the Plumage in Heat Transfer Processes of Birds

Cited by 93 publications

References 31 publications

Female but not male zebra finches adjust heat output in response to increased incubation demand

Female but not male zebra finches adjust heat output in response to increased incubation demand

The allometry of number of feathers in birds changes seasonally

Habitat Change and Timing of Dusk Flight in the Eurasian Woodcock: A Trade-Off between Feeding and Predator Avoidance?

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