Albino or leucistic cowbird (2 Viewers)

[Raffi]

Hello from Southern Ontario, Canada.

I took the picture of this unusually white bird on May 11 on the shores of Lake Ontario, at the entrance of the Welland Canal.

It looks like Red-winged Blackbird or Brown-headed Cowbird (similar in size). Is this some kind of albino or leucistic type. Any help identifying it would be appreciated!

Thank you,
Raffi

 

[delia todd]

Hi Raffi and a warm welcome to you from all the Staff and Moderators. Gosh, he's rather pretty, isn't he. Certainly leucistic, as he shows some colour. You can read more about this condition (as well as related ones, in our Opus Dictionary: Dictionary G-L - BirdForum Opus

I'm sure you will enjoy it here and I look forward to hearing your news.

 

[Andy Adcock]

Hi Raffi and a warm welcome to you from all the Staff and Moderators. Gosh, he's rather pretty, isn't he. Certainly leucistic, as he shows some colour. You can read more about this condition (as well as related ones, in our Opus Dictionary: Dictionary G-L - BirdForum Opus

I'm sure you will enjoy it here and I look forward to hearing your news.

Or is that pollen staining?

Bare parts, legs, bill and orbital ring all look to lack pigmentation.

 

[delia todd]

Or is that pollen staining?

Bare parts, legs, bill and orbital ring all look to lack pigmentation.

Yeah.... I did wonder about that Andy, but thought it looked too neat. I would have thought there would be more irregularity somehow.

I'll certainly go with the majority view though.

 

[nartreb]

Beak shape rules out brown-headed cowbird. Red-winged blackbird is most likely, but i wouldn't rule out rusty blackbird.

(I don't think it's an oriole, but I'm hard-pressed to say why.)

 

[lewisbaggins]

Hi Alex, beautiful shot! Did you happen to hear the bird vocalize, and if so, did its song resemble that of a Red-winged Blackbird or a Cowbird?

Retro Bowl College​

 

[Raffi]

Hi Alex, beautiful shot! Did you happen to hear the bird vocalize, and if so, did its song resemble that of a Red-winged Blackbird or a Cowbird?

Retro Bowl College​

Unfortunately it was very, very quiet feeding on tiny flies.

Raffi

 

[cinnasaur]

It must not be completely albino, because it's got dark eyes. I think the eyes also suggest red-winged blackbird since their eyes usually appear black, while cowbirds' are brown which makes their pupils easier to see their pupils up close. And actually, female red-winged blackbirds often have this distinct peachy-yellow sort of "mask" on their face as well. It lines up perfectly with the face on this one here! I think this photo shows it off nicely: ML172808941 - Red-winged Blackbird - Macaulay Library

Extremely georgeous shot!

 

[AveryBartels]

Agreed with Red-winged Blackbird on bill shape and general shape/posture. A very neat looking bird!

 

[Andy Adcock]

It must not be completely albino, because it's got dark eyes. I think the eyes also suggest red-winged blackbird since their eyes usually appear black, while cowbirds' are brown which makes their pupils easier to see their pupils up close. And actually, female red-winged blackbirds often have this distinct peachy-yellow sort of "mask" on their face as well. It lines up perfectly with the face on this one here! I think this photo shows it off nicely: ML172808941 - Red-winged Blackbird - Macaulay Library

Extremely georgeous shot!

I don't think we can accurately judge eye colour here.

 

[cinnasaur]

I don't think we can accurately judge eye colour here.

A fully albinistic animal virtually always has noticeably pale eyes. It's a pretty clear photo, so it stood out to me that the eyes would still look so dark even with such an extensive lack of pigment everywhere else-- still, maybe the contrast just drew my attention there.

Edit: I found this nice illustrated article about it on Sibley Guides. I think that this bird matches up with the "fully leucistic" example here: Abnormal coloration in birds: Melanin reduction – Sibley Guides

 

[Andy Adcock]

Well I learned something from that, thanks for posting.