Do birds get fat in fall?
Do birds get fat in fall?
I'm talking about the ones that stay in north during winter, not migratory birds. I've noticed that birds like sparrows or tits (yes yes i know funny name) look more rotund in fall, but is that actually fatness or just them fluffing up?
im a bit of a bird nerd here, and while they do put pack a lot in, its not really fat as you and i would think of it. 90% of what you see is just floof to keep warm.
my b&g macaw will put on a little weight in fall even tho hes a tropical chicken. altho admitly that could just be me feeding him differently/different times, cause of the lack of light through the winter.
Mostly puffing up their feathers. On warm days they are suddenly smaller again.
I believe this is scientifically referred to as temporary borbitude.
As opposed to birbitude?
While it may not put on much in the way of body fat, chickadees’ brains gain weight to remember where they hid all their food for winter. This may apply to tits as well since they’re related but I haven’t seen any studies for them specifically.
Just imagine how delighted birds and squirrels would be if introduced to writing and notebooks. We have huge brains yet I can't remember where I left my stuff 5 minutes ago.
haha he said tits