Some Obscurish facts
#984
It takes strong flight muscles and a keen sense of direction for birds to migrate long distances to and from their breeding grounds. It also takes guts, according to recent research by University of Rhode Island researcher and physiological ecologist Scott McWilliams. He found that the gut of migratory birds expands tremendously in the days before the big flight, permitting them to eat enough to see them through the long haul. Then, in order to save on in-flight energy, they re-absorb much of their gut tissues, since the digestive system is one of the most dynamically active parts of the body and requires a tremendous amount of energy simply to maintain. It has long been known that migratory birds do not immediately start to gain weight when the stop at a resting place along the way, and the reason why, is now apparent: they must regrow their gut first, before they can start digesting food and packing on the ounces again!! Another consequence of this state of affairs is that they require protein at their stopovers, not just fruit or other protein-poor foods, in order to re-build their digestive tract.
It takes strong flight muscles and a keen sense of direction for birds to migrate long distances to and from their breeding grounds. It also takes guts, according to recent research by University of Rhode Island researcher and physiological ecologist Scott McWilliams. He found that the gut of migratory birds expands tremendously in the days before the big flight, permitting them to eat enough to see them through the long haul. Then, in order to save on in-flight energy, they re-absorb much of their gut tissues, since the digestive system is one of the most dynamically active parts of the body and requires a tremendous amount of energy simply to maintain. It has long been known that migratory birds do not immediately start to gain weight when the stop at a resting place along the way, and the reason why, is now apparent: they must regrow their gut first, before they can start digesting food and packing on the ounces again!! Another consequence of this state of affairs is that they require protein at their stopovers, not just fruit or other protein-poor foods, in order to re-build their digestive tract.