Are birds waterproof?

[Cocolapew]

I'm sitting looking at 3 wood pigeons sitting in a tree in the lashing rain.
It's a bare branch, why don't they go into where there's more coverage?
Does it not annoy them?
I'm getting pissed off on their behalf

They make such a drama of having a bath, you'd swear they were being killed! We have one just outside the kitchen window and the whole window gets soaked every time. It's gas : )

Dustbaths are like dry shampoo for birds (and DTwatCats, apparently). If you add in Anting (flumping around on top of ants/anthills so that they get pissed off and let off formic acid), that's like a dry shampoo with added pest control.

The oil producing gland is called the uropygial. The substance secreted helps keep the feathers' individual strands tidy and well meshed together by their barbs, which makes the outer feathers more like an umbrella.

I always think that birds look a bit sad when sat all fluffed out in the pissing rain, but all they are doing is increasing the air trapped in their fluffy feathers for warmth whilst the outer ones still do their job, so they're fine, really. Like us with a large brolly and a fluffy jumper.

Cormorants and shags don't waterproof their feathers - being a bit waterlogged makes them nearer neutral buoyancy so they can swim underwater better. That's why they usually swim low in the water (sometimes with their neck almost like a periscope with not much of their back above the water) and why they adopt heraldic poses to dry their feathers.

Heraldic posing cormorants are one of my favourite things, it's even cooler now I know why.

All I had was the fluffy feathers fact but Mitzic beat me to it and with much better prose.

My dad has those ornate bird baths the birds love a flap about don't they as already said very dramatic tis a birdy spa!

Seagulls are really waxy, one flew into the front my car and I had to scrape lots of waxy crap off it. Another time one flew into my friend's huge kitchen window (it was closed) and it left a waxy seagull shape on it.

Thank you, @MrSlant!

I can imagine seagulls being greasy fuckers.
I'm not a fan.

@Cocolapew That's going to stay with me. Every time I see a seagull from now on, I know I am going to mutter "greasy fucker". Am not a fan, either.

I was watching a programme about a Hebradean (sp) island and apparently seagull is still eaten by some, woman in the cafe come post office was making seagull soup the postman said it was an aquired taste and smell

Seagulls are well hard. They’re like tanks, or the big ones are. We saw one get hit by a Volvo in Cornwall once. Made an awful thwack noise. I assumed it was curtains, but he just looked slightly dazed and irritated, shook himself, then flew off indignantly.

Probably. They do enjoy fat balls and the grease has to go somewhere. According to a classic thread on here husbands do too. I think the water runs off the feathers as the strands link together like velcro.

I'm not sure if you were to immerse them in a tank of water they would survive though.

Lol at “are birds waterproof”😂

I couldn't insult them when I see one, there's loads here and greeting magpies takes up enough of my time 🤔😁

DH must be well waxy given the amount of grease he eats.
They eat puffins in Iceland

Birds are really aggressive and territorial-you’d think butter wouldn’t melt but they’re actually quite rage

No, they are not.

It is your moral imperative to shelter any bird you see outside when it is raining.

I have a magpies hoodlums in my street they can drown for all I care.
I will protect the wood pigeons, sparrows and robin though ☔

Correction : it was ganets not seagulls

Oh. What a shame

Correction : it was ganets not seagulls

I'd like to know how the heck they catch a gannet.

Wait a mo, I remember - gannets used to be a staple food on St Kilda, I think the men used to scale the cliffs to take eggs and young, it led to them having particularly well-developed feet.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/StKilda,,_Scotland

I've wandered over from the thread about washing stuff on 60 degrees and in the interests of the environment I'm going throw away my towel and adopt a heraldic pose after I shower instead.

Don't bother showering,just sit on an exposed branch in the rain. The wood pigeons are looking dapper today.