Featherbase

country filter

United Arab Emirates

Afghanistan

Albania

Armenia

Angola

Austria

Azerbaijan

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bangladesh

Burkina Faso

Bulgaria

Bahrain

Burundi

Benin

Botswana

Belarus

Congo, The Democratic Republic of the

Central African Republic

Congo

Switzerland

Côte d'Ivoire

Cameroon

Cyprus

Czechia

Djibouti

Denmark

Algeria

Egypt

Western Sahara

Eritrea

Spain

Ethiopia

Finland

France

Gabon

Georgia

Ghana

Gambia

Guinea

Greece

Guinea-Bissau

Croatia

Hungary

Israel

India

Iraq

Iran, Islamic Republic of

Jordan

Kenya

Kyrgyzstan

Kuwait

Kazakhstan

Lebanon

Sri Lanka

Latvia

Libya

Morocco

Montenegro

North Macedonia

Mali

Myanmar

Mauritania

Malta

Maldives

Malawi

Mozambique

Namibia

Niger

Nigeria

Netherlands

Norway

Oman

Pakistan

Poland

Palestine, State of

Portugal

Romania

Serbia

Russian Federation

Rwanda

Saudi Arabia

Sudan

Slovenia

Sierra Leone

Senegal

Somalia

South Sudan

Syrian Arab Republic

Eswatini

Chad

Togo

Turkmenistan

Tunisia

Türkiye

Tanzania, United Republic of

Ukraine

Uganda

Uzbekistan

Yemen

South Africa

Zambia

Zimbabwe

Belgium

Bhutan

China

Cabo Verde

Germany

Estonia

Faroe Islands

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Gibraltar

Equatorial Guinea

Ireland

Iceland

Italy

Comoros

Liechtenstein

Liberia

Lithuania

Luxembourg

Monaco

Moldova, Republic of

Mongolia

Nepal

Palau

Qatar

Seychelles

Sweden

Svalbard and Jan Mayen

Slovakia

San Marino

Tajikistan

Andorra

Brunei Darussalam

Hong Kong

Indonesia

Japan

Cambodia

Korea, Democratic People's Republic of

Korea, Republic of

Lao People's Democratic Republic

Lesotho

Northern Mariana Islands

Malaysia

Philippines

Thailand

Taiwan, Province of China

United States of America

Viet Nam

Antigua and Barbuda

Anguilla

Argentina

Australia

Aruba

Barbados

Saint Barthélemy

Bermuda

Bolivia, Plurinational State of

Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba

Brazil

Bahamas

Belize

Canada

Chile

Colombia

Costa Rica

Cuba

Curaçao

Christmas Island

Dominica

Dominican Republic

Ecuador

Fiji

Falkland Islands (Malvinas)

Micronesia, Federated States of

Grenada

French Guiana

Greenland

Guadeloupe

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Guatemala

Guam

Guyana

Honduras

Haiti

Jamaica

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Cayman Islands

Saint Lucia

Saint Martin (French part)

Madagascar

Macao

Martinique

Montserrat

Mauritius

Mexico

New Caledonia

Nicaragua

Panama

Peru

Papua New Guinea

Saint Pierre and Miquelon

Puerto Rico

Paraguay

Solomon Islands

Singapore

Suriname

El Salvador

Sint Maarten (Dutch part)

Turks and Caicos Islands

Timor-Leste

Trinidad and Tobago

United States Minor Outlying Islands

Uruguay

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of

Virgin Islands, British

Virgin Islands, U.S.

Vanuatu

Samoa

Mayotte

New Zealand

Réunion

Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha

Cocos (Keeling) Islands

British Indian Ocean Territory

Kiribati

Sao Tome and Principe

French Southern Territories

Antarctica

Marshall Islands

Niue

American Samoa

Cook Islands

Nauru

French Polynesia

Tonga

Wallis and Futuna

Tuvalu

Norfolk Island

Tokelau

Bouvet Island

Heard Island and McDonald Islands

Holy See (Vatican City State)

Pitcairn

Since the 20th century, scientific ornithology has been closely linked to the conservation of birds. The study of feathers is a factor that is often overlooked. In museums, the majority of their bird skin collections are archived, stored away in drawers under lock and key and only ever seen by a very selective audience and not the general public.

You only love what you know, and you only protect what you love.

Konrad Lorenz

Being able to touch, feel and study a feather in the hand engages people, especially children, with nature; what child hasn’t stopped to pick up a feather in a park or their backyard and marvel at it, and wonder what bird it came from. From a long, slender Arctic Tern primary, which has undertaken an incredible migratory journey of around 37.000 miles / 60.000 kilometers from pole to pole, to the soft, downy feather of a Barn Owl, helping the bird to fly on silent wings as it hunts at night; every feather has a fascinating story to tell, each so unique in its makeup, shape, form, texture, color and function it serves to the bird. Feathers can teach us so much about birds and how they live. They bring people closer to the natural world – and therefore play an important role in its preservation.

Featherbase is a working group of German feather scientists and other collectors worldwide who came together with their personal collections and created the biggest and most comprehensive online feather library in the world. Using our website, it is possible to identify feathers from hundreds of different species, compare similarities between them, work out gender or age-specific characteristics and look at the statistics of countless feather measurements. In contrast to the conventional work of museums, Featherbase is much more oriented towards the general public, allowing not just enrolled scientists the opportunity to gain access to the collection, but anyone with an interest in studying birds and their feathers. Featherbase also frequently collaborates with scientific or educational organizations by offering images, data or teamwork in general.

Featherbase works completely independently, without administrative affiliation, and first and foremost without commercial interests. We are a non-profit making entity and funded entirely by our own contributors. The collecting of feathers and skins for our database is approved by the relevant authorities, and for any protected/CITES listed species held, we are fastidious about maintaining records of their origin.

2073

species

7880

specimens

18954

images

118461

measurements

recent changes

Benjamin Großheide created the specimen 11262 in Rufous Night-Heron (Nycticorax caledonicus)

16.03.2025

Alexander Haase uploaded a new image to 9940 inside Black-headed Munia (Lonchura malacca)

16.03.2025

Alexander Haase uploaded a new image to 9941 inside White-browed Robin-Chat (Cossypha heuglini)

16.03.2025

Alexander Haase created the specimen 11257 in Sardinian Warbler (Curruca melanocephala)

16.03.2025

Ryota Shinya created the specimen 11255 in Ashy or Ryukyu Minivet (Pericrocotus divaricatus)

13.03.2025

Ryota Shinya created the specimen 11254 in Javan Banded or Malayan Banded Pitta (Hydrornis guajanus)

13.03.2025

Alexander Haase uploaded a new image to 10760 inside Northern Carmine Bee-eater (Merops nubicus)

12.03.2025

Alexander Haase uploaded a new image to 5451 inside Ruddy Kingfisher (Halcyon coromanda)

12.03.2025

Alexander Haase uploaded a new image to 9943 inside Desert Finch (Rhodospiza obsoleta)

12.03.2025

Alexander Haase uploaded a new image to 9276 inside Red Kite (Milvus milvus)

12.03.2025

Benjamin Großheide created the specimen 11239 in Green Woodhoopoe (Phoeniculus purpureus)

10.03.2025

recent changes

new specimen

new specimen image

new specimen image

new specimen

new specimen

new specimen

new specimen image

new specimen image

new specimen image

new specimen image

new specimen

Random specimens