Blog #334 Feather Itch

Ophelia shading her young with her wings or being a “mombrella.” 

At 18, 15, and 13 days old, the Salt Point Three have begun their exponential  growth spurts. The nestlings will be able to thermoregulate their body temperatures  starting around two weeks old and do so by panting heavily. Ophelia stands with  her wings partially outstretched in a “mombrella” pose creating shade for her  vulnerable young and their tender skin which is sensitive to UV ray exposure. She’ll  take quick dips in the lake to further cool off the young. Both Ophelia and the  nestlings get their water from the fish the eat, but Ophelia will also take a sip of  lake water on extra hot days. As the young birds age they develop a crop, the first  chamber of a two-section stomach, where food is digested. When satiated, the  crop will bulge. 

From two weeks on, their feathers start replacing down. First to grow are the rusty yellow pinfeathers on the head and neck followed by dark body feathers. Their  feathers are slowly pushing the down out of the feather sheaths, which grow from  follicles arranged in neat rows called feather tracts. In between the feather tracts  are patches of bare skin that will get covered by a thick growth of feathers.  

The arrangement of feathers allows the birds to function with less feathers overall,  which drastically reduces the total weight of feathers—one of many adaptations for  flight. The arrangement of the feather tracts differ from one group of birds to  another. While scientists do not know the reasoning behind these differences, they  use feather tract patterns to determine how to classify and group birds.

Feather track on a bird. The uropygial or preen gland has waterproofing oil in it. 

Growing feathers is an itchy process, especially on hot humid days, but preening  brings temporary relief. The older the nestlings get, the more they will preen to  relieve the itch. Blood vessels nourish the feather growing in the feather sheath  until it is fully formed, then the blood vessels wither away. Once the feather is fully  formed, the waxy sheath bursts open and falls off, or the bird removes the sheath  while preening, and the feathers unfurl from their packaging. 

Emerging dark feathers. Young Osprey preen and peck away at the white sheath until they crumble. 

Each feather on a bird’s body is a finely tuned structure that serves an important  role in the bird’s activities. Feathers help birds fly, but some also help them show 

off, blend in, stay warm, make music, and keep dry. Some feathers have evolved  as specialized airfoils for efficient flight. Others, like peacocks and scissor-tailed  flycatchers, have developed into extreme ornamental forms that may even hinder  mobility. The hummingbird makes its sound with its tail feathers. Often we can  readily tell how a feather functions, but sometimes the role of a feather is  mysterious.  

14 and 17-day-old chicks with pin tracts from which future feathers will grow. 

Ospreys of all ages spend a lot of time preening, combing their feathers into place,  removing ectoparasites, and spreading waterproofing uropygial oils on them. Now  that the chicks have started preening, it’s a bit like a toddler teething. The chicks  start preening as their feathers begin to emerge, which is presumably a pretty itchy  process. Once their feathers are out of their sheaths, they will spend a lot of  pushing, brushing, and running their beaks through their new feathers to keep  them in good condition for flight. 

Eyes to the sky! 

Candace  

Candace E. Cornell  

Friends of Salt Point  

Cayuga Osprey Network 

Lansing, NY  

cec222@gmail.com

EYES ON OSPREYS  

  

WATCH! 

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On Osprey Time—A Blog on the Ospreys of Salt Point 

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HELP PROTECT OSPREYS  

• AVOID GETTING TOO CLOSE TO NESTING SITES DURING THE BREEDING SEASON. IF AN  ANIMAL VOCALIZES WHEN YOU'RE NEAR, YOU ARE TOO CLOSE! BACK OFF IMMEDIATELY. • CARRY BINOCULARS TO VIEW WILDLIFE FROM AFAR. 

• RESTORE, CLEAN, AND PRESERVE LAKESHORE AND WETLAND HABITAT. • RECYCLE USED FISHING LINE, WHICH CAN BE HAZARDOUS TO OSPREY. • JOIN THE CAYUGA OSPREY NETWORK AND VOLUNTEER TO HELP MONITOR OSPREY  NESTS. WRITE TO: CEC222@GMAIL.COM.

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