Thermoregulatory Behavior in Migratory European Bee-eaters (Merops apiaster)

Birds in hyper-arid environments have acute problems of energy and water balance, and thermoregulate both physiologically and behaviorally. I report on European Bee-eaters (Merops apiaster) engaged in a previously unreported thermoregulatory behavior of diving into the sea and in salt ponds with hig...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe Wilson journal of ornithology Vol. 122; no. 2; pp. 378 - 380
Main Author Yosef, Reuven
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Fort Collins The Wilson Ornithological Society 01.06.2010
Wilson Ornithological Society
Subjects
Animal behavior
Arid environments
Bird migration
Bird refuges
Bird watching
Birds
Body temperature
Body temperature regulation
Deserts
Diving
European bee-eater
Galeocerdo cuvier
Merops apiaster
Methods
Ornithology
Ponds
Regulation
Saline water
Salt ponds
Seas
Sharks
Short Communications
Tigers
Water balance
Water loss
Waterfowl
United States
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ISSN1559-4491
1938-5447
DOI10.1676/09-135.1

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Summary:Birds in hyper-arid environments have acute problems of energy and water balance, and thermoregulate both physiologically and behaviorally. I report on European Bee-eaters (Merops apiaster) engaged in a previously unreported thermoregulatory behavior of diving into the sea and in salt ponds with high levels of salinity. This behavior may also explain the previously reported, but unexplained, finding of bee-eaters inside a tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier) in the Red Sea. These observations should instigate future experiments on the subject of selective use of salt water for evaporative cooling and thermoregulatory behavior by desert birds.
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ISSN:1559-4491
1938-5447
DOI:10.1676/09-135.1