Feather by exposure to emulsifying agents due to human pollution. Feathers can then become waterlogged, causing the bird to sink. It is also very difficult to clean and rescue birds whose feathers have been fouled by oil spills. The feathers of cormorants soak up water and help to reduce buoyancy, thereby allowing the birds to swim submerged. Bristles are stiff, tapering feathers with a large rachis but few barbs. Rictal bristles are found around the eyes and bill. They may serve a similar purpose to eyelashes and vibrissae in mammals. Although there is as yet no clear evidence, it has been
Leonard Cohen: Bird on a Wire phone call from Herb Cohen, Frank Zappa's former manager, telling him that he had located dozens of boxes labelled "Bird on a Wire." Machat had died in 1988, but his son Steven obtained and delivered all 296 film canisters to Palmer. Since the negative was not available, Palmer used the soundtrack to reconstruct the film to its original form. The film stock was in fragile condition, some disintegrating to the touch. Restoring the film required piecing together the film from 3,000 fragments. The film was then sent to Cohen, who wrote back that he was "glad the problem has been