| |
BACKGROUND
The feather is the one thing that makes
a bird unique from all other animals.Not flight, not eggs. All an
animal needs is one feather and it is considered a bird. Feathers
not only help a bird to fly, they also keep a bird warm and dry.
Feathers are also an excellent form of camouflage. Most birds even
use their feathers for mate selection and courtship displays. A
few other minor roles that feathers can serve for birds are egg
incubation, balancing on the ground and in flight, and lining the
inside of their nests. There are six main types of feathers: flight/body
contour, down, filoplume, semiplume, and bristle.
Most people do not know how feathers actually come in on a bird’s
body. The feather always starts with a protective sheath and the
feather barbs and vane grow out from that. Showing a feather separating
and sealing with the barbs would also be nice. This would show how
and what one of the reasons is for preening.)
Feathers are made out of keratin, which is the same protein that
hair, nails, claws, and horns are made out of. Keratin gives feathers
flexibility and strength. Just like hair fully grown feathers are
dead cells, because after they grow out they no longer need a blood
supply. Whenever a feather is worn and broken it is molted out so
that a new feather can grow in its place. It is very important for
birds to have strong and healthy feathers since they serve so many
different purposes.
Preening is the way that birds keep their feathers healthy and strong.
Birds run their beak along the length of the feather to seal up
any tears, pick out any dirt or insects, and spread preening oil
over the surface of the feather. Preening oil is useful for conditioning
the feather vane as well as water proofing it.
|
