Editing Feather (section)

==Parasites==
The feather surface is the home for some ectoparasites, notably feather lice ([[Phthiraptera]]) and feather mites. Feather lice typically live on a single host and can move only from parents to chicks, between mating birds, and, occasionally, by [[phoresy]]. This life history has resulted in most of the parasite species being specific to the host and coevolving with the host, making them of interest in phylogenetic studies.<ref>{{Cite journal|author1=Toon, A. |author2= Hughes, J. |name-list-style=amp|year=2008|title=Are lice good proxies for host history? A comparative analysis of the Australian magpie, ''Gymnorhina tibicen'', and two species of feather louse|journal=Heredity|volume=101|issue=2|pages=127–135|doi=10.1038/hdy.2008.37|pmid=18461081|doi-access=free|bibcode= 2008Hered.101..127T }}</ref>

[[Feather holes]] are chewing traces of lice (most probably ''[[Brueelia]]'' spp. lice) on the wing and tail feathers. They were described on [[barn swallow]]s, and because of easy countability, many evolutionary, ecological, and behavioral publications use them to quantify the intensity of infestation.

Parasitic cuckoos which grow up in the nests of other species also have host-specific feather lice and these seem to be transmitted only after the young cuckoos leave the host nest.<ref>{{Cite journal|author1=Brooke, M. de L.  |author2=Hiroshi Nakamura|year=1998|title=The acquisition of host-specific feather lice by common cuckoos (''Cuculus canorus'')|journal=Journal of Zoology|volume=244|pages=167–173|doi=10.1017/S0952836998002027|issue=2}}</ref>

Birds maintain their feather condition by [[preening]] and bathing in water or [[dust bathing|dust]]. It has been suggested that a peculiar behavior of birds, [[anting (bird activity)|anting]], in which ants are introduced into the plumage, helps to reduce parasites, but no supporting evidence has been found.<ref>{{Cite journal|author1=Revis, Hannah C. |author2=Deborah A. Waller|year=2004|title=Bactericidal and fungicidal activity of ant chemicals on feather parasites: an evaluation of anting behavior as a method of self-medication in songbirds| journal=Auk|volume=121|issue=4|pages=1262–1268|doi=10.1642/0004-8038(2004)121[1262:BAFAOA]2.0.CO;2|s2cid=85677766 |doi-access=free}}</ref>