Page 41 - ICSE Science 3 : E-book

Feathers Camoufl age

A bird’s body and its wings are covered with soft and fl uff y Mingling with the
surroundings so that
feathers. They are the most unique feature of a bird. They
it cannot be spotted
help the bird to keep itself warm and to camoufl age. or seen.

Types of feathers
Feathers are of three main types.

Body feathers

Body feathers are the small feathers that cover the body, wings and tail
of a bird. They are strong but light in weight. They give colour and a

smooth shape to the bird.

Down feathers

Down feathers are located underneath the body feathers. They are soft
and fl uff y, and help to keep the birds body warm.

Flight feathers Did You Know!
Birds like to keep their
Flight feathers are long and fl at. They
feathers clean. They bathe
are found on the wings and tail of a regularly and use their

bird. Wing feathers are strong and used beak to rearrange their
feathers
in fl apping. Tail feathers help the bird
in shape.
to change its direction during a fl ight.

Upstroke
How Birds Fly

Birds fl y with the help of their wings. Wings have

feathers on them which help birds to fl y up and

down in the air easily. Birds have strong fl ight
muscles that help them to fl ap their wings in
both upward and downward direction in order to

move. When a bird fl aps, the wings move in two

special ways called upstroke and downstroke.
In upstroke, the wings are lifted up and backward.
Downstroke
In downstroke, the wings are pushed down and forward.

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