JR the Eastern Screech-Owl is undergoing the normal- for-his-species but crazy-looking full-head molt right now. He’s almost bald. It lets us point out rarely seen filoplume feathers, which are basically just thin shafts with a tiny tuft on the top, found all over birds’ bodies. While the exact function of filoplumes is still being researched, they seem to be sensors for surrounding eathers.
Bonus Reading:
The Most Mysterious Feather: Filoplumes (Novice level)
Filoplume morphology covaries with their companion primary suggesting that they are feather-specific sensors (Bird Nerd level)
Owls have feather-whiskers? They really are sky cats 😆
They do have a lot in common!
The moustache (rictal bristles) are also thought to work somewhat like cat whiskers. Since owls can’t move their eyes (too big!) they have a blind spot right in front of their face at their beak. The whiskers are still feathers, but they likely give feedback on what they are touching in that blind spot.
