Wing Image Collection

The original collection of wing images listed in the right hand column of this page was taken or scanned between 1997-2005.   We thank the Burke Museum, University of Washington, for the loan of numerous shorebird wings and permission to include images on our website and all the workstudy students and volunteers that contributed to the effort.  We are now in the process of retaking many of the images using a standard background, including a scale, preening and straightening feathers, and cleaning wings.   As of May 2006, we have about 30% of the images redone.   The new images, along with the old that have not yet been redone, can be browsed and searched using our wing image database available here.  There are several standard searches available on the "Featured Searches" page including Order, Family, common group name, and common name.  The common name can be entered in whole or part.  For example, to view all warblers, simply search on warbler.  When viewing an image, clicking on any blue word will retrieve all images that contain that word.  As an example, if you are viewing an image of a warbler from May, clicking May will retrieve all wings from May.  

Notes specific to the original wing collection:  The wings were scanned or photographed at more than one scale because of size differences and because the images were captured at many different times and by different people. The rectangular tags, which measure from 40-43 mm (about 1-5/8 inches) in length (tags that are blank or have only PSM number measure 35 mm), or round tags, which measure 18.5 mm in diameter (about 2/3 inch) will provide a scale for each photo. There are a few nonstandard tags on some birds, and some wings had the tags removed digitally. Many of the gull wings were photographed just to show their tips, so no tags are visible. No scale was included for aesthetic reasons.

We have attempted to have the images duplicate the coloration of the original wings as closely as possible, but that has not always been easy. Both digital photography and scanning sometimes results in colors being rendered with some inaccuracy, so we don't guarantee perfection in hue and saturation. Shapes and patterns will be perfect, colors sometimes a little off, so please don't use the images as research subjects if coloration is an important variable. If you are conducting research on wings, feel free to apply to this museum for a loan.

Some of the wings are in molt (indicated by "MOLTING"), and a survey of all of these wings should provide a primer on bird molting patterns.