How can birds fly in the rain

You may wonder how birds survive. Where do birds go when the weather is bad? You may notice less bird activity when it rains. And birds seem to disappear entirely during strong storms and wind. Where do they go? How do they protect themselves? And what about hurricanes?

Do birds fly away from bad weather or sit it out? How do they find food? Do many birds die during stormy weather? What can you and I do to help birds during prolonged periods of inclement weather and storms?

During light rain showers most birds continue their normal activity. Birds are very active and need to eat frequently. In light rain the just keep doing their bird thing. They can do this because their feathers are waterproof. Well, the feathers aren't waterproof in themselves. Birds make their feathers waterproof through the activity of preening. Birds spend much of their time caring for their feathers. This is called preening.

They use their bill to sort through their feathers. They clean off dirt and parasites. They smooth and align all the small interlocking barbules that act like tiny zippers to hold the feathers together neatly.

This keeps the feathers well maintained and helps keep water from reaching the skin below. You may see birds reaching around to their rump with their bill, often with their tail fanned as they stretch around. There is a special preening gland also called oil gland at the base of the tail in most bird species. Its exact name is the uropygial gland.

Birds wipe a waxy oil from this gland onto their bill and crown and then apply it to the rest of feathers.

The preening "oil" makes the plumage shiny and like new. Well-care-for feathers repel water by their fine structure, more so than any properties of the preening oil itself source. So during a light rain birds generally stay out, finding food and living their lives. They stay dry with their water-repelling plumage just as you might with a good rain suit. If the rain is too hard, however, or is accompanied by winds, then birds need to seek shelter.

We discuss this next. Rains accompanied by strong winds can have a more deleterious affect on birds. The seabirds far offshore in the above photo are strong fliers.

Or, rather, they use the strong winds for dynamic soaring. But what do they do during multiple days of such conditions? Certainly they must get tired out. They can't find food in that choppy water turned to froth. In fact, a study found that it causes them a lot of stress. A team of researchers studied birds living in a Costa Rican rainforest. Through blood samples, they found that the birds had higher levels of a stress hormone on rainy days.

That may not surprise you. After all, many animals feel stressed out during storms. Pet owners often find that rain and thunder make their animals nervous. Some animals respond to nature so strongly that they almost seem to predict the future!

Ducks, for example, are known to stay out in the rain and even play in puddles. Birds have also been seen using a downpour as a chance to bathe themselves. For those that live in hot, dry climates , rain also seems to be a welcome chance to cool off. Have you ever seen a bird flying through a downpour?

More than likely, they were looking for something to eat. What do you like to do when it rains? Would you rather play in the rain or stay warm inside? A, NGSS. C, NGSS. D, NGSS. A, CCRA. In the meantime, ask an adult to help you keep learning with one or more of the activities below. Get Audubon in Your Inbox Let us send you the latest in bird and conservation news. Email address. Find Audubon Near You Visit your local Audubon center, join a chapter, or help save birds with your state program.

Explore the Network. Become an Audubon Member Membership benefits include one year of Audubon magazine and the latest on birds and their habitats. Join Today. A bird may be able to hide from the rain for a couple of hours but during a longer shower or storm they will need to get wet or face starvation. In light showers you will see birds fluff up their feathers to keep warm but in heavy rain they will flatten down their feathers to make them more water-resistant. Many birds are also able to preen their feathers with a layer of water-resistant oil.

They tuck their bills into oil glands located at the base of their tails and then spread the oil on their body with their beaks. In heavy rain birds will adopt a classic posture with their bodies upright and heads withdrawn with their beaks pointed towards the rain. You may also see birds huddled together not only to keep warm but also to prevent rain hitting them. Some birds will even take baths in the rain, particularly in hot countries where there could be long periods of drought.

They will perch in the tops of trees or the ends of branches and splay their tail feathers and wings to take full advantage of the rain falling on them vigorously shaking themselves now and again to remove any excess water.

Once the rain has stopped they will preen themselves and dry their feathers in the sun. Most birds can fly, at least short distances, in the rain using the oil to protect their feathers. However, in particularly heavy rain their wings may eventually get saturated with water making it difficult to fly and leaving them more vulnerable to predators.

Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Bird watching.