Why don't birds get frostbite on their feet?

BRY2K

Birds actually use several tricks to keep their legs from freezing. For instance, they can stand on one leg and pull the other up under their feathers when one leg starts getting too cold. And if it gets really cold, they can squat on their perches and cover both legs. If you see a bird doing this, he or she very well may be getting uncomfortably cold legs. Some birds, like gulls and penguins, have a very special trick. Like all other animals, birds send the warm blood of the body into the legs, and so this helps. But unlike most other animals some birds do this in a special way; the blood vessels going into the legs lie right next to the blood vessels leaving the legs. So, as the nice warm blood from the body flows next to the cooler blood leaving the feet, that cooler blood gets heated up before re-entering the body. This prevents more heat from being lost to the cold air then is necessary, which is a key part of not losing cold parts to frostbite. Sometimes birds toes do get frostbit. Mourning Doves in particular have a hard time dealing with our cold winters. Mourning Doves have not lived in our cold climate as long as tough little birds like chickadees, and sometimes they will lose a toe or two to frostbite! http://www.ccmr.cornell.edu/education/ask/index.html?quid=967 Dec 21 08, 8:25 AM

edmund80

They can get frostbite on their feet, especially their toes. Even indoor birds kept in a cage can get frostbite, although this is more common among escaped pet birds which are not used to cold temperatures. "Besides hypothermia, birds can also suffer frostbite. This is more often a problem in escaped pet birds rather than outdoor aviary birds (which have probably become adapted to cold temperatures). Missouri veterinarian, Julie Burge, DVM, has treated a number of indoor pet birds for frostbite after they escaped outdoors in the winter. “In one of these cases the bird lost most of its toes when it sat on a metal surface in freezing temperatures for several hours,” Dr. Burge noted. “An indoor bird that is not acclimated to cold temperatures cannot adjust its circulation adequately to keep enough blood flow to the toes in these circumstances.” Outdoor birds can also suffer frostbite — if it suddenly falls below freezing and the birds are not used to it and if they do not have adequate shelter to protect themselves." http://www.birdchannel.com/bird-diet-and-health/bird-care/bird-hypothermia.aspx There is no cure for frostbite. The affected part will turn black and drop off. This is true even with birds kept in cages. If they get scared in the night and hold on to the cold metal parts of the cage, their feet can get frostbite if it gets cold enough in the room. http://books.google.com/books?id=S4biF33292QC&pg=PA63&lpg=PA63&dq=birds+protected+from+frostbite+by&source=web&ots=6j-8coADoP&sig=dDkimZTkRIx7_dajSprVxK7xYqI&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result Dec 21 08, 4:48 PM

redrose1226

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