How Feathers Insulate

How do birds stay warm when it's so cold?

A single Canada Goose has between 20 and 25 thousand feathers. Some are designed to help the bird fly or shed water. Many are the short, fluffy kind, the down that insulates the bird from the cold. Birds survive in sub-zero weather by fluffing their feathers, creating layers of air and feathers. Just a fraction of an inch of this insulation can keep a bird's body temperature at 104 degrees, even in freezing weather.
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Full Transcript

Transcript:

BirdNote^®

How Feathers Insulate

Written by Frances Wood

This is BirdNote!
[Canada Goose honking, and sounds of water]
Imagine this Canada Goose paddling along on a cold winter day. Can you guess how many feathers cover this goose? Hundreds? Thousands?
[More honking]
A single Canada Goose has between 20 and 25 thousand feathers. A smaller bird like a sparrow or wren might have 7 to 10 thousand. Those feathers are uniquely designed to help the bird fly, shed water, or display distinctive markings. A great many feathers are the short, fluffy kind, the down, whose purpose is to insulate the bird from the cold.
Birds survive in sub-zero weather by fluffing their feathers, creating layers of air and feathers. Just a fraction of an inch of this insulation can keep a bird’s body temperature at 104 degrees, even in freezing weather.
People learned years ago how well goose-down insulates and began stuffing comforters, sleeping bags, and clothing with it. More recently, we have developed artificial substitutes, but geese and other birds continue to get along just fine with the original material.
[More goose honking]
January is a good time to begin a new volunteer activity and Audubon chapters depend upon the experience and good will of volunteers. To learn about the opportunities nearest you, begin with a visit to birdnote.org. We’ll help you find your niche. After all, “nicher” in French means to nest. I’m Frank Corrado.
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Calls of the Canada Goose provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Recorded by G.B. Reynard.
Producer: John Kessler
Executive Producer: Chris Peterson
© 2012 Tune In to Nature.org January 2012 Narrator: Frank Corrado

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