the.com/plumage
A bird's entire outfit, and its entire argument for getting to reproduce.
means The complete covering of feathers on a bird, especially as it displays color, pattern, and condition.
from From French 'plumage,' built on 'plume' meaning feather, which traces back to Latin 'pluma' — soft feather or down. The same Latin root quietly gave English the word 'plume' itself.
- molt cycle
- Most birds fully replace plumage once or twice yearly
- color source
- Some blues come from structure, not pigment, ever
- breeding plumage
- Many species grow flashier feathers only to attract mates
- flamingo pink
- Comes entirely from pigments in their shrimp-heavy diet