How to Identify Feathers

Feathers of a great spotted woodpecker, left by a predator, Germany (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

17 December 2019

When we find a feather we often wonder, “What bird dropped this feather? What species is this?” Here are some quick tips for identifying feathers.

Before we begin, keep in mind that without a permit it is illegal to collect and/or keep feathers of any native non-game species. You can touch feathers, flip them over, and take lots of photos but you must leave the feathers behind.

Photos are what you really need anyway. Include an object near the feather to give it a sense of scale (size). Remember the location and habitat where you found it so you know what species are possible. Now you’re ready to figure out whose feather it is.

First determine the feather type so you know where it came from on the bird’s body. At this point you don’t care about color.

Types of feathers — Not To Scale (translated from Spanish via Wikimedia Commons)

In the wild you’re most likely to find tail, wing or contour feathers, the same ones you see on the bird. The descriptions below include parts of a feather vocabulary defined here.

  • Rectrix (tail): Tail feathers (plural:rectrices) have barbs of equal length on both sides of the vane. (red arrows)
  • Remige (wing): Wing feathers have short barbs on one side, long ones on the other. (yellow arrows short and long)
  • Contour feather: covers the body
  • Semiplume: insulation under the contour feathers
  • Down: the warmest insulation near the skin
  • Bristle: sensory vane near beak and eyes (unlikely to find)
  • Fitoplume: sensory vane on wings (unlikely to find)

Next, think of birds with colors and patterns at that location on the body.

For additional help use the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Feather Atlas ID Tool for North American birds. At the Feather Atlas you’ll need to know the feather’s size in centimeters before you begin.

Ready for a quiz?

A. The feathers shown above are from a great spotted woodpecker eaten by a predator in Germany. What body part did they come from?

B. Here are two feathers of North American backyard birds. It’s a little harder to tell what body part they came from. (Length: red=9-10cm, blue=12-14cm) What do you think? Can you identify the species?

Two feathers from North American birds (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

It’s challenging to identify feathers. Here are more resources to help.

(photos from Wikimedia Commons; click on the captions to see the originals)

17 thoughts on “How to Identify Feathers

  1. That Feather Atlas is a great resource! Thanks for posting the link to that. I think the bottom feather is a Blue Jay tail feather (which is what I thought before looking it up in the Atlas). The top feather is tougher. I would say a Brown Thrasher wing feather.

  2. The Feather Atlas is pretty cool! I have used it many times; very simple & I have always been able to identify the feather in question.

  3. I am changing my guess on the top feather to a Northern Cardinal tail feather. Even though the shape looks more like a wing feather from the ID rules, if you look at the pictures in the feather atlas, it looks like a tail feather. And I will keep my guess of a Blue Jay tail feather for the bottom one.

  4. I just took some pictures of some feathers found in my yard. Is there anyway I could send pictures of these feathers to possibly identify what kind of bird they belong to.?

    1. Post feather photos on iNaturalist found feathers project and people will help you identify them. There is a free phone app for iNaturalist.

  5. I cant find out what feather i have i really need help it has an equal amount of hear on each side and the vine is going start down the middle

    1. To narrow the possibilities we’d have to know the location (city,state) and habitat (forest, suburbs, beach, grassland, mixed).

  6. I found large feathers in the crawl space of my house. What would do this. No feathers outside

    1. My guess is: If there were bones with the feathers then a bird died in the crawl space. If just feathers alone, then an animal brought the feathers in to make a cozy nest.

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