Birds are some of the most striking creatures on Earth, coming in a rainbow of colors that serve several important functions, such as attracting a mate and communicating with other birds. These ...

Researchers found that the iridescent shimmer that makes birds such as peacocks and hummingbirds so striking is rooted in an evolutionary tweak in feather nanostructure that has more than doubled the ...

Filoplumes may be tiny, but these hairlike feathers enable nonstop flights that span thousands of miles. Filoplumes may be tiny, but these hairlike feathers enable nonstop flights that span thousands ...

In October 2022 a bird with the code name B6 set a new world record that few people outside the field of ornithology noticed. Over the course of 11 days, B6, a young Bar-tailed Godwit, flew from its ...

Researchers examined dozens of bird species in museum collections looking for differences in the feathers and bodies between birds that can fly and birds that can't. They found that when birds evolve ...

For most birds, looking good for spring means undergoing a partial molt. Because feathers are pure protein, shedding and rebuilding a wardrobe from scratch drains massive amounts of time, calories, ...