While they may not be waterproof, owl feathers have evolved ingenious adaptations for camouflage and quiet flight over millions of years. Their color alone is a wonder of specialization, dominated by natural hues, shades of brown, cream, and gray. The dark surfaces of their feather vanes (the webby part) are saturated with the pigment melanin, which gives them not only extra strength and hardness but also resistance to abrasion and to feather-degrading bacteria and parasites.
