new feather?

[hbwfan]

2 of my girls have been picking at something on their skin, about 2/3 of the way down their backs. I thought they looked like ticks but my husband says they are new feather buds and they are black in the middle. They are black and white chickens. Is that how new feathers grow? Why do they pick at it?

 

[peepacheep]

There is a protective sheath around newly emerging feathers. As the feather grows out the chicken will remove the covering when preening so the feather can unfurl. If you ever bring a severely molting chicken indoors you will discover what they are working on. I have had some hens create circles dander within minutes when they preen while molting.