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Bird Photos: Oddities: American Robin with Albinistic
Feather Tracts
This American Robin was seen at the Bear Valley
Visitors Center of Point Reyes National Seashore in Marin Co.,
California on 10/10/04. My birding class and I were on the lookout
for Varied Thrushes and we thought we had one in this bird. Much
to our surprise, it was an American Robin.
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This bird appears to have
leucistic, and possibly albinistic, feathers in the greater
coverts which creates a broad white wing bar. One of the
tertial feathers as well as some of the longer primaries
appear to have some lack of melanin (dark pigments). It
appears that a few of the mantle (back) and facial feathers
are lacking some dark pigmentation, as well. The breast
areas that have reddish pigments appear to be normally colored.
the plumage appears fresh because the pale edging on the
breast and belly feathers give it a scalloped appearance.
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| In this image, we can see
more of the back, rump and some of the primaries. The lower
back and rump have a similar spotchy white appearance like
the mantle. It looks like the primaries that have white
in them have dark tips, and what we can see of the secondaries
appears to be normally pigmented. The tail shows a bit of
irregular coloration, a paleness of the outer third of the
central feathers.
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