Feathers might seem like a pretty mundane part of nature, although it's a little-known fact that they have a strong bond with the heavens and all spiritual realms. Our guardian angels scatter feathers ...

When one of his eagles dies, Waha Thuweeka starts by painting the top of its head with a traditional dry ochre paint often used in Comanche ceremony, then traces the paths of its major arteries and ...

The dance tradition has survived five centuries of cultural changes and fused Mexico’s pre-Hispanic past with its present Alejandro E. Hernández, Fernando Gumeta-Gómez, Gustavo Hinojosa-Arango, Marco ...

Across various cultures, religions, film and literature, feathers have a strong symbolic meaning. Feathers have certain connotations based on their use and color meaning, but there is also a deeper ...

Saint John the Evangelist (New Spain, 17th century), feather mosaic and paper on copper (Collection Daniel Liebsohn, all images courtesy Himer Verlag unless indicated) Cover of ‘Images Take Flight: ...

According to a new study, the precise patterning of bird feathers relies on signaling through ectodysplasin (EDA) and its receptor EDAR -- the same signaling pathway known to be crucial for the ...

Chris Maynard is obsessed with feathers. The artist, based in Olympia, Wash., thinks feathers show “life’s perfection,” in the way that they overlap and contour to a bird’s body. “Their complexity as ...

Researchers have described ten fossil feathers from the polar regions of the former continent Gondwana for the first time. The collection, documented in a recent paper in Gondwana Research, contains a ...

In our new series “Instants,” the Proof staff brings you a snapshot of recent dispatches from the @natgeo Instagram feed. Follow us to experience more from National Geographic on Instagram. Making an ...

Feathers differ from these other β-keratin containing tissues, because the feather protein is modified in a way that makes them more flexible," says Mary Schweitzer, professor of biological sciences ...