WIND-SPEED DEPENDENCE OF THE OVERALL THERMAL CONDUCTANCE OF FUR AND FEATHER INSULATION

1. The effect of wind on heat loss from animals is usually described by a relation of the form a + bu(c). 2. I used data from heated taxidermic mounts of 6 avian species and 4 mammal species to determine the exponent c for the functional relation between heat transfer and wind speed, u. 3. For overall thermal conductance, 0.54 < c < 1.03. 4. For overall thermal resistance, 0.16 < c < 0.61. 5. Using an incorrect value of c makes the slope of the relation, b, dependent on the range of wind speeds used. 6. There is considerable variation in c among mounts of different species.