Question: When did birds start growing feathers

Helen Gath answered on 17 Jun 2014:

Hello there! I do like all these bird based questions!

The evolution of birds is very interesting because they are actually related to dinosaurs, or more specifically, reptiles! Feathers are actually a VERY modified scale that you find on reptiles. They are made of keratin, the same material that your finger nails are made of. This makes them very light but very strong. The first feathers would have been very basic modifications of a reptile’s scale; maybe it stuck out a bit more than usual in a longer thinner way. Over thousands of years, these modified scales would have evolved into the very complex feather structure we see today on birds.

We are not sure of when reptiles began to evolves feathers, but from the few fossils that have been found, some dinosaurs had feathers over 200 million years ago! Back then, their purpose may not have been to help them fly, but to serve another purpose, such as camouflage. Over many changes and many years, feathers became more and more refined in their design until finally, they allowed for the wondrous power of light!