Ear covers
As ear ceiling or ear coverts a feathering portion at the most is birds referred obliquely on the head side, behind, or located below the eye. These are reshaped contour springs that surround the external auditory canal . They protect the ear, reduce air resistance and wind noise during flight, but also improve the absorption of sound. In some groups of birds, such as vultures or ratites , they may be absent or reduced.
View of the ear-coverts of a golden eagle
For comparison: the exposed ear of a rhea
Orange-brown ear-coverts in a zebra finch
literature
- Gerhard Hummel: anatomy and physiology of birds. (= UTB 2144). Verlag Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-8252-2144-X .
Individual evidence
- ^ A b Gerhard Hummel: Anatomy and Physiology of Birds. (= UTB 2144). Verlag Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-8252-2144-X , p. 198.
- ^ A b Gerhard Hummel: Anatomy and Physiology of Birds. (= UTB 2144). Verlag Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-8252-2144-X , p. 277.