Birds have air conditioning

The secret of the big bird's beaks makes the natural world learn headache for centuries. Until recently, Brazilian scientists discovered that mines help them cool their bodies.

Birds (including 38 species) live in tropical regions of the Americas. They have colorful fur, big beaks and fruit. If you calculate the ratio between the mine and the body, it is the largest beak in the bird world. Naturalist Charles Darwin, the father of evolutionary theory, thinks that a large mine is a tool to help birds attract the attention of their partners, but many other scientists think they use mines to peel fruits or threaten the enemy.

But a recent study proved that these judgments are not true.

Scientists from the Estadual University Paulista (Brazil) studied the cooling capacity of six Ramphastos toco - the largest beak in the flock. The expert team uses infrared cameras (capable of detecting the change of body temperature) to monitor the heat flow process in the bird's body.

" Infrared cameras help us monitor the surface temperature of a bird's beak when they come in contact with air with temperatures between 10 and 35 degrees Celsius. It even allows us to accurately measure temperatures at mines. "Dr. Denis Andrade, head of the research team, said.

Birds have the largest "natural air conditioner" in the animal world, considering the relative proportions of mines and bodies.Photo: Telegraph.

Andrade noticed that, when the ambient temperature increased, the floss of the flounder also heated up rapidly. Then, the heat from the bird's body is transmitted to the mine through the blood. When reaching the mine surface, the blood will cool quickly by exposure to air . That process causes bird's body temperature to drop. Conversely, when the ambient temperature decreases, the bird's beak is cooled down.

The effect of the " natural air conditioner " is most evident at night. When the sun goes down, the bird only takes a few minutes to lower its body temperature with a beak. That helps them sleep better.

Flamingos have complex blood vessels that allow them to increase or decrease blood flow to mines at all times. Therefore, if you want to cool down quickly when it is hot, the bird only needs to increase the amount of blood on the mine.

" On the contrary, when it gets cold, birds are able to reduce blood flow to the mine to maintain heat in the body. In general, the mechanism of changing blood flow to the mine can help them reduce 5 to 100% of body heat. , Andrade explained.

Many other animals also use a body part to cool . For example, elephants and rabbits lower their body temperature through their ears. However, in terms of relative proportions between the mine and the body, it can be said that the bird owns the largest natural air conditioner in the animal world.