birds

Saving the New Zealand Fairy Tern: 3D Printed Eggs on Easter Sunday

In honor of Easter Sunday today, we’re bringing you a special story about 3D printed eggs, but this isn’t your typical Easter Egg piece. The Department of Conservation (DOC) in…

3D Printing Unpeeled: 3D Printing Endangered Bird Eggs, Polymer Satellite Bus, QIDI

The New Zealand Department of Conservation (DOC) is using 3D printing to help protect the endangered fairy tern. The New Zealand variant is critically endangered with only about 40 of…

Featured

Max the Macaw is Back in Business with 3D Printed Titanium Beak

Birds use their beaks for a number of reasons, from grooming and eating to climbing and fighting. Max, a handsome 20-year-old macaw now living in the Hyacinth Haven Bird Sanctuary…

Hornbill Proudly Displays His New 3D Printed Beak

The Jurong Bird Park in Jurong, Singapore is home to several hornbills, including a Great Pied Hornbill named Jary. His name means “helmeted warrior” in ancient Norse, and it’s a…

Run, Gumpy, Run: 3D Printed Feet for Gumpy the Seagull

3D printing is influencing the way so many innovators around the world create today. Whether you are a hacker, a hobbyist, a designer, engineer, or a surgeon, chances are you…

Researchers Successfully Using 3D Printing to Study Complex Animal Behaviors

While we’ve seen the effects that 3D printing can have on human mating rituals, the technology can also be used to help with animal breeding research. 3D technologies are often…

Peacock Receives 3D Printed Prosthetic Foot From Generous Reddit User

One of the best aspects of 3D printing is its ability to help animals all around the world. From prosthetics to walking aids, it’s proven to be an affordable and…

Using 3D Printing Technology to Save the Animals in 2017

As we prepare to usher 2017 out and welcome 2018 in, we’ve been reflecting on all of the ways that 3D printing technology has been used to make a difference,…

Through Teamwork and Trial and Error, Pete the Parrot Gets a 3D Printed Prosthetic Leg

We’ve seen many amazing stories of 3D printing technology helping injured birds, from 3D printed beaks and feet to orthotic boots, leg braces, and prosthetic legs. A 34-year-old Mealy Amazon parrot named Pete was the…

Beauty and the Beak: Nonfiction Children’s Book Tells the Story of First Bald Eagle to Receive a 3D Printed Prosthetic Beak

I have always been an animal lover. In addition to the cat I had growing up, I had a myriad of caged pets as well – a hamster, fish, parakeets,…

e-NABLE is Going to the Birds: 3D Printed Prosthetic Leg for a Secretary Bird in Germany

Usually when we write about worldwide volunteer network e-NABLE, we’re sharing an inspiring story about its 3D printed prosthetics and the children who receive them, or one of the many ways…

A Parrotlet in 3D Printed Goggles Just Proved Researchers Wrong About the Aerodynamics of Bird Flight

Sometimes science can be really, really adorable – while teaching us important things, as well. While putting tiny goggles on a small parrot may seem to be good for nothing…

Red-Crowned Crane Receives 3D Printed Beak

With the exception of the infamous cock-fighting rings, bird fights aren’t normally those associated with guts and gore in the animal kingdom. However, I’ve come to believe that this is…

Flocks of Visitors are Greeted by Flocks of 3D Printed Birds at Zwin Nature Reserve

The Zwin Nature Reserve bills (no pun intended) itself as an “international bird airport.” Located in the West Flanders region of Belgium, the reserve is a favorite stopping point for…

University of Illinois Veterinarians Use 3D Printing to Help With Eagle’s Surgery

There’s no denying the impact that 3D printing technology has had on the medical industry. From surgical preparation to patient-specific prosthetics, it has become a viable technological solution for a…

Vultures Need Helping Hand from 3D Printed Eggs

I have a soft spot in my heart for ugly animals and I love a good underdog story. I’m not saying I would turn up my nose at a basket…

Scanning Birds to Save Birds: Artec 3D and Threeding Team Up Again For New Preservation Project

The number of endangered species on the planet continues to grow at an alarming rate, and over one thousand of those species are birds. The reasons are multitudinous – habitat destruction,…

Injured Stork Walks Again Thanks to 3D Printed Leg Braces From Mass Portal

When you picture a stork, the first thing you probably think of are its long, slender, delicate legs. The tall waterfowl depend on those long legs for wading through the…