The Importance of the Legs in the Thermoregulation of Birds

Steen, Inoer; Steen, Johan B.

doi:10.1111/j.1748-1716.1965.tb04067.x

Cited by 138 publications

(80 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…Additionally, Clark [1973] and others [e.g., Dawson and Hudson, 1970] presume heat retention to be a primary function of unipedal resting in birds. While there is little doubt that the legs and feet are a significant source of heat loss in avian species [e.g., Kahl, 1963;Steen and Steen, 1965;Kilgore and Schmidt-Nielsen, 1975;Baudinette et al, 1976], little evidence has been presented to support the notion that unipedal resting actually serves to regulate such heat loss, and no studies have systematically examined this possibility in flamingos. Despite the lack of supporting data [Pickering, 1991], a thermoregulatory function remains the most commonly cited explanation as to why flamingos stand on one leg while resting [e.g., Ogilvie and Ogilvie, 1986;Pickering, 1991;SeaWorld Education Department, 2005].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Why do flamingos stand on one leg?

Anderson

Williams

2009

Zoo Biology

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A series of observational studies of captive Caribbean flamingos Phoenicopterus ruber were conducted to determine why flamingos rest on one leg. While frequently asked by the general public, this basic question has remained unanswered by the scientific community. Here we suggest that the latency of flamingos to initiate forward locomotion following resting on one leg is significantly longer than following resting on two, discounting the possibility that unipedal resting reduces muscle fatigue or enhances predatory escape. Additionally, we demonstrate that flamingos do not display lateral preferences at the individual or group levels when resting on one leg, with each bird dividing its resting time across both legs. We show that while flamingos prefer resting on one leg to two regardless of location, the percentage of birds resting on one leg is significantly higher among birds standing in the water than among those on land. Finally, we demonstrate a negative relationship between temperature and the percentage of observed birds resting on one leg, such that resting on one leg decreases as temperature rises. Results strongly suggest that unipedal resting aids flamingos in thermoregulation.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Why do flamingos stand on one leg?

Anderson

Williams

2009

Zoo Biology

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“…The efficient insulation provided by feathers might be expected to limit the influence of ambient temperature and hence of peripheral factors, although the unfeathered legs are known to be important in thermoregulation (Kahl, 1963;Steen & Steen, 1965) and the comb and wattles of chickens have often been considered important sites for physical heat loss. It is also possible that these extremities might contain receptors which could elicit panting reflexly as occurs with the poorly insulated scrotal skin of the sheep (Waites, 1962).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of hypothalamic temperature in the control of panting in the chicken exposed to heat

Richards¹

1970

The Journal of Physiology

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SUMMARY1. In unanaesthetized chickens, the temperatures of the hypothalamus, colon and skin have been recorded in relation to the onset and cessation of thermally induced panting.2. During control conditions, hypothalamic temperature showed fluctuations associated with arousal and movement. It was lower than colonic temperature by about 0.90 C but this difference generally decreased during exposure to heat.3. When the birds were exposed abruptly to 400 C, or to ambient temperatures increasing gradually from 20 to 520 C, there was a delay of 15-65 min and marked increases in both peripheral and central body temperatures before panting commenced.4. Infra-red irradiation ofthe thorax and abdomen caused vasodilatation in the comb and toe before detectable increases in the deep body temperatures. Increasing the colonic temperature by up to 20 C did not cause panting until hypothalamic temperature was also raised. This inhibitory effect of normal hypothalamic temperature was enhanced by low ambient temperature.5. Infra-red irradiation of the head increased hypothalamic temperature by up to 3.50 C and caused vasodilatation in the toe without changes in colonic temperature. Panting, however, did not occur so long as colonic temperature was within the normal range. The inhibitory effect of normal colonic temperature was again enhanced by low ambient temperature.6. In anaesthetized chickens, selective heating of the head and body caused panting only after increases in both the hypothalamic and colonic temperatures.7.

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“…This prevents heat from reaching the surface of the appendages. The same mechanism, also found in the legs of seagulls and other birds that swim in cold waters (Steen & Steen, 1965), transfers heat mainly by conduction from the core to the skin surface through the blubber. The corresponding flux in the steady state is given by:…”

Section: The Modelmentioning

confidence: 93%

Assessment of body surface temperature in cetaceans: an iterative approach

Silva

2004

Braz. J. Biol.

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Heat transfer from skin surface to ambient water is probably the most important aspect of thermal balance in marine mammals, but the respective calculations depend on knowing the surface temperature (T S ), the direct measurement of which in free animals is very difficult. An indirect iterative method is proposed for T S prediction in free cetaceans from deep body temperature, swimming speed, and temperature and thermodynamic properties of the water.Key words: cetaceans, thermoregulation, skin temperature, prediction. RESUMO Determinação da temperatura cutânea em cetáceos: uma abordagem iterativaA transferência de energia térmica da superfície corporal para a água é provavelmente o aspecto mais importante do equilíbrio térmico em mamíferos marinhos, mas os respectivos cálculos dependem do conhecimento da temperatura da superfície, T S , cuja medição direta em animais em liberdade constitui um problema difícil de resolver. Um método iterativo é proposto para a predição de T S de cetáceos em liberdade, a partir da temperatura corporal profunda, da velocidade de deslocamento e da temperatura e propriedades termodinâmicas da água.Palavras-chave: cetáceos, termorregulação, temperatura cutânea, predição.

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The Importance of the Legs in the Thermoregulation of Birds

Cited by 138 publications

References 7 publications

Why do flamingos stand on one leg?

Why do flamingos stand on one leg?

The role of hypothalamic temperature in the control of panting in the chicken exposed to heat

Assessment of body surface temperature in cetaceans: an iterative approach

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