From NYS Dept Of Environmental Conservation

This short-eared owl is showing off a behavior known as “rousing”. Rousing is when a bird lifts and shakes out its feathers, often to rearrange displaced feathers and shake off water and dust during grooming. It’s also a sign of a relaxed and content bird.

    • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
      1·
      4 days ago

      From some quick browsing, it seems like most, if not all birds will rouse. It sounds much like it serves most of the same functions as a puppy dog shake - floofing up the feathers/fur, shaking off water/dust, or for some invigoration after a nap.

      I also stumbled on this short article about it as part of a pre-flight behavior and how as a photographer to use this understanding as a tool to catch take off shots:

      A raptor at rest will often perform one or more of the following behaviors just prior to taking off.

      • poop (possibly a weight-saving device)
      • wing-stretch (stretches flight muscles prior to use)
      • turn into the breeze or wind (makes takeoff easier, so it requires less energy)
      • rouse (shaking to reorganize out of place feathers, which makes flight more efficient)

      All these things do line up with my own experiences watching birds.