Data of feather recovering performance of birds and micro structure of pigeons’ feathers

Data is presented to explain why birds can recover their ruffled feather vanes by shaking wings and preening feathers with the beak. Presented data includes the SEM microscopic images of rachis, barbs and barbules of pigeon’s feather and the images recording the experiments of observing and mimicking the recovering performance of pigeons. These high-quality images and models could be used for future research on feathers. Data helps to better understand the micro structure of feathers and the reason birds can fly. Data also support research on bioinspired mechanical structure, especially for flapping robot development.