Toucans use peak to cool

2009/07/30 Kortabitarte Egiguren, Irati - Elhuyar Zientzia

• Zoologia

A team of researchers from Brock University of Canada has discovered that the long and colorful Toucan beak acts as a radiator and that the animal uses body heat to brake.

The peak of the toucan goose occupies a third of the length of the body of these animals and ornithologists have been studying their function for years. The Canadian research team has photographed toucans with thermal sensitive cameras at different ambient temperatures and has found that the surface temperature of the beak varies rapidly depending on the temperature of the medium. It has also been proven that the beak contains many blood vessels and that Toco toucans are able to regulate body heat by modifying the blood flow that reaches the surface of the beak: when it is cold to retain heat or when it is hot to cool it. For example, they have seen that at dusk, when they go to sleep, the body temperature in a few minutes is able to cool 10 degrees Celsius, radiating heat.

In the image you can see a photo taken with thermal sensitive cameras, with temperate areas of yellow and colder painted purple.

Image courtesy of: Glenn Tattersall