Rare 'white' blackbird spotted
17 Mar 10
An amateur birdwatcher has spotted a rare white blackbird in her back garden.
When Fiona Crofts, 26, first saw the bird in her garden in Deeping St James, near Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, she thought it was a white dove.
Ms Crofts said: "I was getting ready for work and looked into my garden and saw a white bird. I thought it was a dove, but when I reached for my glasses and saw it was actually a blackbird."
The 26-year-old administrator said that she believes the bird may have a strange genetic disorder, but specialists think it is an albino.
Experts said albino birds are white as their beak, claws, eyes and plumage lack normal pigmentation.
Stating that there are different levels of albinism in blackbirds, Erica Howe, from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), said: "Some are completely white, while others have only a few white patches or feathers."
The RSPB revealed that more than 160 species of birds in the UK are prone to albinism and it is genetic.
Copyright © Press Association 2010
http://www.rspb.org.uk/ ( Royal Society for the Protection of Birds)
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