Oddball resident blackbird. (1 Viewer)

[Nannyannie]

I have a blackbird which visits the garden daily. When I first saw her (presuming it's a she or maybe a young male) I thought she had been attacked as the feathers are very scruffy. Not losing feathers, far from it, it seems to have too many feathers on its body, all fluffed out like an exploded shuttlecock. Initially I thought it had not fledged properly and was in the process of developing adult feathers but there has been no change for weeks. It is very happy, eating and drinking well, mixing with other birds and generally getting on with life. Has anyone any idea if the feathers will sort themselves out eventually, I've never seen anything like it before.

 

[delia todd]

Hi again @Nannyannie . I've moved your post to the Garden Birds forum, where more people are likely to see it who can advise on this.

I'm wondering if it's a very tired adult after raising a brood... she'd soon be moulting and the feathers should then return to normal. However, I'm just guessing really.

Is it possible for you to get a picture do you think?

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