FEW creations of the natural world possess the dazzle factor of feathers. They are at the crux of some of the most astonishing courtship displays and migrations on Earth, and have long been a centrepiece of human culture, art and mythology.
Made from keratin, feathers provide visual appeal and also help birds (and, millions of years ago, dinosaurs) to fly. They also help birds to swim and camouflage themselves, as well as keep warm, dry and protected.
Some of the remarkable vibrancy and diversity of feathers is captured in these mesmerising images taken by photographers . 鈥淔or us, bird feathers are probably the most poetic masterpiece of evolution,鈥� they say.
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Photographing various types of plumage housed at the Museum of Natural History in Berlin, Germany, they combined individual shots taken at varying levels of light to 鈥渆xpose the essence鈥� of the extravagant colours, shapes and structures of feathers, which make 鈥減eople succumb to their charisma鈥�, they say. A book of their images is due out later this year.
The iconic colourings of the scarlet macaw are displayed in the main image, showing its mainly red plumage and blue wing feathers; below it is a yellow shoulder-feather from the same species. Then from there is the feather of a black-headed parrot, the typical eyespots of a great argus pheasant, the plumage of a blue bird-of-paradise (pictured above) and the tail feathers of a grey peacock-pheasant (pictured below).
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