How do birds manage to survive freezing cold temperatures when we’re hiding indoors avoiding frostbite? Nature has equipped them with some clever mechanisms to combat the cold.
Want to give them extra nutrition in the winter? See our Guide to Best Birdseed.
How Birds Manage Cold Weather
Ever wonder how wild birds stay warm when the temperature outside is freezing cold?
Let’s look at how they are equipped to manage in frigid weather.
Birdy, It’s Cold Outside
As record-setting low temperatures froze parts of the United States and Canada recently, it’s hard to imagine how wild birds manage the cold. With such tiny bodies and exposed legs, why don’t they freeze?
Here in southwestern Ontario, Canada, it was chilly (-24° C | -11° F) plus windchill, which was enough to risk frostbite, though not nearly as cold as some other areas.
Let’s look at some ways birds have managed in very cold conditions for millions of years.
1High Body Temperature
You might not expect it, but the normal body temperature of birds (105°F | 40°C) is several degrees higher than humans (98.6°F | 36.7°C). That’s a good advantage right there.
2Feathers
They’ve got downy coats! And feathers have several traits that help manage moisture, heat, and cold.
We’ve all seen birds in the winter sun with their feathers puffed up. This creates an air space around their bodies that is warmed by their body heat. Like a little heated tent.
3Rain Coats
The oil secreted from their uropygial gland or preen gland gives feathers a waterproof coating. That’s why they don’t get cold and soggy in the snow or rain. Grease is the word.
4Built-in Heat Exchangers
Those skinny little legs and feet contain a complex system of veins and arteries (called rete mirabile) that work as heat exchangers, keeping everything circulating and warm. Where our fleshy fingers or toes would freeze, theirs keep functioning.
5Tucking
Another familiar sight is birds standing on one leg with the other tucked up under the body, or tucking their beak or bill in their wing feathers. That’s another way they make use of their own body heat.
6Shelter
Birds naturally take shelter for a safe place to rest away from bone-chilling winds. This is why trees and shrubs are important habitat year-round.
In our garden we keep a pile of old tree branches. In the growing season, it provides food sources like insects. In the colder months, birds gather there, protected from cold winds.
7Gatherings
While they’re not exactly spooning, birds will cluster together to share body heat.
I’ve noticed this in the roosting pockets we have hanging from tree branches as well as vacant nesting boxes.
8Torpor
While they may be chatty and active during daylight hours, a cold night may trigger torpor. Torpor is a natural state that lowers a bird’s body temperature and metabolic rate. This allows the body to function with much lower energy needs. It’s like a mini-hibernation but the trade-off is it does leave them more vulnerable to predators.
Watch My Bird Feeder
What We Can Do for Wild Birds in the Winter
In average winter conditions, there is no need to provide heated huts or any other human comforts.
Birds have managed cold for millions of years and the basic needs are always the same: food, shelter, and ways to escape predators.
Provide Habitat
Growing an abundance of non-invasive plants (trees, shrubs, vines, flowering perennials) suited to our regions is always top of the list.
And, along with a diverse selection of plants, do not “clean up” in fall. Natural debris like old perennials and fallen leaves support all the living things that call our gardens home from microbes to butterflies to birds and mammals.
Provide Running Water
Along with plants, running water is vital for life in the garden. If there are not natural sources nearby, consider adding a pond. We have two small ponds and keep the pumps running in winter along with deicers (the same type used in horse water troughs) in place to ensure there is always water available. This also protects the fish as they overwinter.
If you don’t have room for a pond, consider getting a heated birdbath. Look for one with a shallow bowl and secure places for the birds to perch. Drowning is far too common in deeper bowls.
Provide Good Quality Food
If bird feeders are permitted in your area, choose top quality birdseed, otherwise much of it will go to waste. Black-oil sunflower seeds provide maximum nutrition with minimal energy expended by the birds.
Also consider making homemade peanut butter suet for extra fuel for the birds during the cold months.
Keep Cats Indoors
Domesticated cats kill record numbers of wild birds each year. If you can keep yours indoors, all the better.
Resources
Listen
Watch Live Bird Cams
Here’s another way to enjoy the birds: armchair birding!
This lists some of my favorite live bird cams and highlight reels.
Keep warm and enjoy!
~Melissa the Empress of Dirt ♛