We isolated and characterized novel duck feather-degrading bacteria producing keratinase. Twelve strains were isolated from soil and faces at poultry farm, and decayed feathers. They were identified as Bacillus methylotrophicus, Pseudomonas geniculata, Pseudomonas hibiscicola, Exiquobacterium profundum, Bacillus pumilus, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, Chryseobacterium indologenes, Bacillus thuringiensis, Thermomonas koreensis, respectively, by phenotypic characters and 16S rRNA gene analysis. Generally, the level of keratinase production was not proportional to feather degradation rate. The highest keratinolytic activity was observed in the culture inoculated with Chryseobacterium indologenes D27. Although all strains did not degrade human hair, strains tested effectively degraded chicken feather(53.8-91.4%), wool(40.4-93.0%) and human nail (51.0-82.9%). These results suggest that strains isolated could be not only used to improve the nutritional value of recalcitrant feather waste but also is a potential candidate for biotechnological processes of keratin hydrolysis.