juvenal plumage

biology

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June 30, 2026

Quick Summary

Juvenal plumage refers to the feathers a bird has immediately after its natal down. This is the first set of true feathers that replace the downy covering of a newborn chick.12

Juvenal plumage often differs from the adult bird's feathers and may be drab, streaked, or spotted, which helps camouflage young birds. In some species, like cranes, this juvenile plumage is brown or gray and gradually replaced by adult feathers over several molts, with the final juvenile feathers disappearing around the bird's second year. This plumage is part of the bird's life cycle, with feathers being lost and replaced through molting.23

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anseriform
Life history
In most large species the juvenal plumage is retained through much of the first year of life. Ducks, however, begin to lose the juvenal body feathers almost at once. Some replace the juvenal plumage with an immature nonbreeding (or “basic”) plumage, acquiring the first nuptial (or “alternate”) plumage in the…
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In most large species the juvenal plumage is retained through much of the first year of life. Ducks, however, begin to lose the juvenal body feathers almost at once. Some replace the juvenal plumage with an immature nonbreeding (or “basic”) plumage, acquiring the first nuptial (or “alternate”) plumage in the…
Read More