Getting to know our blackbirds better (1 Viewer)

Our resident blackbird seems to have some very minor white patches. Would this be some very, very mild form of albinism? I know there are much more extreme examples, but I've never really noticed an affected one before. Or is he just going through a bit of a dodgy phase that most members of the species do?

He's a spirited little fellow; he doesn't seem to mind us being quite close to him while he's rooting around for food. He's been hoovering up lots of winged ants in the last couple of days. My wife's gotten quite attached to him and has taken to calling him Snowflake (if you knew her, you wouldn't find it odd!)

There's also an adult female and a juvenile living in our hedge. Snowflake is a bit possessive over the food though and tends to spend a lot of time chasing one of them away (not sure which but presume it's the female). Any idea what might be going on there? Just a competition thing? Or maybe it's not his female / offspring?

Nice pictures!

There is an article about blackbirds with leucism here which you may find interesting.

It is a bit unusual to see much of blackbirds at this time of year as they are moulting and this drains them and makes them more vulnerable to predation. They can look patchy at this time and are often quite scruffy, which is maybe why the blackbird appears to have white bits. Blackbirds spend a lot of time chasing other blackbirds away from their territory and will fight to death, especially during food shortages and breeding time, but when the last of their young has fledged, they become less territorial until the Autumn when they begin to be seen again looking sleek and smart with their new feathers.