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Mighty mallards! 🦆
This raft of ducks is enjoying the open water in Tenney Park lagoon.
But how is it these birds can stay in icy water all day and not develop frostbite or hypothermia?
The answer lies in the way ducks circulate blood through their feet. To prevent frostbite, one must continue to supply healthy tissue with nutrients, such as oxygen, and also keep that tissue from freezing. To prevent hypothermia, humans must keep their core body temperature above 35 degrees F. Ducks, and other animals equipped for cold temperatures, have veins and arteries that lie close to one another, creating a ‘countercurrent’ heat exchange.
But, how does it work? Basically, arteries carrying warm, oxygenated blood away from the heart warm up the cold blood that is moving through the veins towards the heart and away from the extremities. By the time the oxygenated blood reaches the extremities, it is much cooler, preventing much, if any, heat loss by the duck’s feet in cold water. Conversely, by the time the blood from the veins reaches the duck’s heart, it is much warmer, preventing a drop in the animal’s core body temperature.
Countercurrent heat exchange is a physiological process that has been perfected by nature and is so successful that it has been mimicked by industry and engineering.
By the way, in addition to a ‘raft’, a group of ducks can also be referred to as a ‘team’ or ‘paddling’ as well.
#PhenologyFriday #Mallards #Ducks #OpenWater #CounterCurrent #HeatExchange #CounterCurrentHeatExchange #PerfectedByNature #WIEnviroEd #NatureIsEverywhere #NatureIsForEveryone #EveryBodyOutside
