Can Birds Fly in the Rain?

Question

At what point does it all become too much for them?

Answer 1

The birds only can fly for a while , and they usually stay at the place till the rain end , because they can't fly if their wings r wet , tht don't mean they can't fly , they still can fly , but they dont fly for a long distance , but this must depends on how the rain is going .. heavy or something .. Finally, wot i can tell u is bird don't fly when raining , unless they r in a danger stituation .

Answer 2

Many birds 'fly' under water ie.cormorand penguins.Ostriges cant fly at all.Most birds can ,and do fly in the rain.generaly bids wouldnt be bothered much because their feathers are preened and coated with oils which are not wetted by water.If you would like to understand wetting/not wetting do the washing-up (at least once) .Put some dishes stained with cooking oil,fat or butter in a bowl or sink and put water on them(dont cover them).Tilt the dish and notice that tmost of the water runs off the dish(some might remain as drops).Now add a tiny amount of washing up detergent,tilt, and you will find no more drops.The detergent has allowed the water to 'wet' the greasy surface.

When oil tankers leak oil into the sea and seabirds get covered with the oil, their wings and feathers stick together so they can't fly or swim-This means that they starve.
Gower Bird Hospital takes in these oiled birds and uses detergents to clean away the oil.When the birds are clean they have lost their own special oil as well as the tanker oil;consequently they are unable to go to sea.The Bird Hospital keeps these birds safe until the birds can oil their feathers.

Answer 3

Either when their feathers become soggy and waterlogged, which is not likely because birds have a water-repellent waxy stuff on their feathers, or when the force of the wind and the beating down of sheets of water prevent the bird from being able to steer (or probably see, by this point). Severe storms cause wind shears and up/down drafts that also prevent birds from being able to maintain lift or direction, but this is more a matter of the movement of air masses than the raindrops themselves (just for the same reason you'd get turbulance in an airplane).

Answer 4

Although birds have some natural protective covering to prevent soaking of their wings anyway it will be difficult for them to take a long fly.

Answer 5

Yes, i have seen them flying in the rain for sure.
But they do struggle to keep up their pace......

But i guess i have seen them only in the first 10-15 mins as the rain begins.

Answer 6

obviously they can but if its heavy rain, hailstones or snow they dont like it and prefer to stay in cover. they can become 'snowblind' and disorientated in heavy weather. watched a crow this morning in a hail shower and it was struggling to decide which direction to fly because every direction it chose was wrong so it flew in circles quickly altering direction and circling again.

Answer 7

I guess they prefer not to,but their wings are oily to prevent water penetration which could bring them down.
Their eyes are also equipped with a membrane[Nictitating membrane] that allows them to protect their eyes from particles when they fly.

Answer 8

Yes they can
to the point that the shear force of the rain
is greater than their strength to manage it !!

Answer 9

Ever heard the saying"like water off a ducks back"

Answer 10

When their wing feathers are soaked, they lose the ability to fly, until it dries.