Eye-ring
Eye-ring
Anatomical feature in birds
The eye-ring of a bird is a ring of tiny feathers that surrounds the orbital ring,[5] a ring of bare skin immediately surrounding a bird's eye.[5][6] The eye-ring is often decorative, and its colour may contrast with adjoining plumage.[4] The ring of feathers is sometimes incomplete, forming an eye arc. In the absence of a conspicuous eye-ring, the orbital ring of a bird is often referred to as the eye-ring.[4][7][8][9] The bare orbital ring may be hardened or fleshy, or may form an eye-wattle. These are useful field marks in many bird species,[8][10] and the eye-ringed flatbill, eye-ringed tody-tyrant and eye-ringed thistletail are examples of species named for either of these.