Solar - Heating Panels for Canada Geese
by Dr.Bob Bailey

Everyone knows that nothing feels better than a few warm rays on a cold morning. Especially if you’re a bird, with a high body temperature and you happen to live in a chilly environment.

These Canada geese are nesting at the Station Pond, behind Delta Waterfowl’s headquarter facilities on the Delta Marsh. It has been a cold, blustery spring. The birds are dropping their wings by their sides to expose the dark rump feathers, and catch a bit of warmth from the spring sun. Chilly geese will orient their bodies into the wind, so the rounded, outer contour feathers will deflect cold air, and help the underlying down feathers retain body heat. At the same time, the birds turn their backside toward the sun, to absorb heat through the short, dark feathers on the rump.

The back section of waterfowl has the least amount of insulation. Plumage is sparse here with less down, and the fat layer is normally much thinner than elsewhere. In addition, the vital organs of the body core are closest to the surface on the backside. Since birds don’t pant like a dog or sweat like a human to cool down, heat generated during strenuous activities like long migrations, is dispensed through the backside of the flying bird, kind of like a natural cooling system. Similarly, when the weather turns cold and the bird is inactive, it can take in a few rays to help warm- up by exposing their custom- made solar heating panels in this area to a little spring sunshine.