Anatomy Of A Feather

Vaned feathers which cover the exterior of the body and down feathers which are underneath the vaned feathers. The bright colouring of a peacock tail feather.

Bird External Anatomy Ornithology

This covers the legs and feet and is thought to be vestigial from the dinosaur age.

Anatomy of a feather. The rachis is the rest of the shaft after the calamus. Anatomy of a feather. Parts of an adult male rooster.

Calamus or quill. The genetic ability or inability to absorb manufacture or deposit colour. There are also tiny parts called barbules and hooklets that help hold the barbs together and give the feather its shape.

Understanding feather anatomy at the microscopic level provides insight into how feathers function. Made from hardened keratin each serve a special or particular function. Vane the whole collection of barbs rachis the barbs extend from this part of the central stem barb the stiff fibers that come up at perfect angle from the stem afterfeather small feathers with no hooks hollow shaft calamus the part of the shaft that extends below the vane.

We often say birds are covered in feathers. It doesnt have any barbs on it. Parts of a flight feather.

This area is the base. Parts of a feather. Also called contour feathers pennaceous feathers arise from tracts and cover the entire body.

The plumed part of the feather that grows from the central shaft. The vane is the normal pennaceous portion. The calamus is the part of the shaft held in the feather follicle on the skin of the bird.

At the junction of the calamus and rachis is the plumulaceous portion of the vane. Feathers arise from feather follicles. As feathers grow they mature into highly branched structures.

The pennaceous feathers are vaned feathers. Parts of a feather. Figure 1 shows feathers of various sizes shapes colors and purposes on an adult male rooster.

For example the interlocking velcro like structure on many bird feathers creates the smooth flexible and resilient surface that supports flight and sheds water. In general feather types include. There are two basic types of feather.

Primary long feathers located at the tip of the wing secondary shorter feathers located along the trailing edge of the inner wing tail feathers attached to the birds pygostyle. Physiology of the feather feather growth. The vanes are like the canvas sails on a mast.

Pronounced kal e mes the large hollow portion of the shaft that attaches the feather to the birds skin or bone. Feathers are unique to birds. Feather anatomy the parts of a feather you can see with the unaided eye are the rachis vane afterfeather barbs downy barbs and the hollow shaft.

John anderson the ohio state university. Notice that the two vanes. Soft keratin structures undergo constant moult and.

That is everything that has feathers is a bird.

Wing And Feather Anatomy