How Do Birds Stay Cool On Hot Summer Days?

We’ve been experiencing some pretty hot days lately and while most of us stay cool in air conditioned homes and workplaces, our backyard bird friends have adapted other ways to stay cool. Did you know that just like dogs, birds pant to cool down. When dogs and birds pant they move air across the moist surfaces of their lungs, throat and mouth. This causes warm moisture to evaporate away from their bodies, allowing them to feel cooler. Birds, like dogs, don’t have sweat glands.

Just like us, birds seek out shady areas to stay cool. During hot periods, birds spend more time resting in these shady areas and less time flying, singing or eating. If there are cool breezes, birds may fluff up their feathers or flutter their wings to allow the air to reach their skin. They may also hold their wings away from their bodies to lower body temperature. Birds also cool themselves by taking dirt baths.

And, speaking of baths, the best bath of all is when a bird finds a cool puddle of water or a birdbath to splash around in! By providing your birds with a birdbath, you are not only helping them stay hydrated with drinking water, but with bathing water. Birds may walk through the bath to cool their bodies or sink into the water and shake it all over their feathers. The depth of the bath should be no deeper than 1- 2 inches to accommodate both large and small birds.

Dripper/misters are also great for birds in hot weather. Birds are attracted to moving water and you will find more birds dropping by for a drink and a dip if you provide a dripper/mister. The Common Grackle in the photo comes every day to the birdbath and just stands in the mist. Besides this Grackle other birds, including Hummingbirds prefer misters. They are too small to use a bath and will flutter in the cool mist or fly in and out cooling themselves.