Canadian Goose Down - Parkas and Duvets

If you look through catalogues for cold weather items, you're sure to find canadian goose down parkas, duvets, blankets and more. Just why is Canadian Goose down so popular?

First, what IS down? Down is the soft, fluffy underfeather that birds have beneath their flight wings. Down isn't the long, grey feathers that a bird uses to fly. It is the short, white, almost snowflake-like feathers that are close to a bird's body. Down is sort of like a white dandelion flower.

The purpose of down is to keep the bird warm. It acts as a layer of insulation, trapping warm air next to a bird even while it is freezing cold outside. It is this same insulation property that makers of jackets, parkas, blankets and duvets want to take advantage of.

A goose makes more or less down based on its weather conditions. That is, a goose that lives its life on a Florida golf course needs very little down and does not bother to grow much. However, a goose that lives in the northern Alaskan area would have very rich, thick down. So the location of the geese can have an impact on how heat-retaining the resulting item is.

Down is rated in "fill power". This in essence calculates how much air a quantity of down can trap. The higher the fill power, the more air being trapped, meaning the warmer the down will keep you.

Canadian Goose down is far better in durability and heat-trapping than artificial insulation is. It provides about 3 times the heat value. Canadian goose down is also better than eider down. Since canadian goose down is "natural", it is also much more eco-friendly than creating synthetic insulations.

A goose Canadian goose down, once it is washed thoroughly and sterilized, can be 100% non-allergenic, which is critical to people with allergies.

Note that down comes from geese which already being brought to the meat market. That is, you cannot just "gather down" from live geese. The best down comes from an older, mature goose. So instead of throwing away the feathers from geese who are already being used for their meat, the feathers become a warm product that can last for decades.

Canadian Gooses Main Index of Photos and Articles

Encyclopedia of Birds - Descriptions and Photos

Note: I originally wrote this content while I edited the site at birding.bellaonline.com. That site has permission to show my content.