Bird Feather Molting
When a peacock molts, do his feathers come back
with the exact same coloration patterns, or do the colors change
from year to year?
Usually when adult birds molt, the new feathers have the same color as the
old ones. There are exceptions, male American goldfinches change colors each
time they molt, from bright summer color to drab winter color and back
again. Young birds usually change color and pattern to some degree when they
molt to adult plumage. Birds like eagles and some gulls may go through 4
years of changes before they have full adult colors.
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Update: June 2012