A pinfeather is a new feather just beginning to grow on a bird, still wrapped in a thin, protective sheath that makes it look like a tiny pin sticking out of the skin. When you see a bird with what looks like short, stubby quills poking through its feathers, those are pinfeathers.

As the feather develops, the bird preens itself or the sheath naturally breaks away, revealing the soft, full feather inside. Young birds growing their first feathers are covered in pinfeathers, and adult birds get them too whenever they molt and replace old feathers.

If you've ever raised chickens or pet birds like parakeets, you've probably noticed these odd-looking spiky growths. Pet birds sometimes get itchy when pinfeathers are growing in, which is why they appreciate gentle head scratches from their owners in spots they can't reach themselves.

In cooking, pinfeathers refers to the small feather stubs that sometimes remain on a chicken or turkey after plucking and need to be removed before cooking.