Help! Black body and bald looking head.... and ideas?

[stephen p]

poor chap, hope he's ok.

Got a soft spot for them.

[tonydom]

Hi, I live in Cardiff and for the last few weeks my garden too has been visited by a bald headed blackbird.

It's not as bad as the one in the photo but bald around it's eyes. It seems quite happy foraging etc and might also have a nest nearby. I've seen it with a male who's normal. Parasites or something else? Either way it's getting on with life. I shall try to get a photo and post it.

[freiston]

Please see this thread for information.

[tiadublin]

Hi, I've got a female blackbird in my garden which has no feathering around it's windpipe, and it looks like the same thing is beginning to happen just above the tail feathers, and it looks very sore. It's been around the garden for about 3 months or so and seems to be healthy enough even though it looks in quite a bad way. It is very tame and will come right up to me. It has also raised at least two baby blackbirds.

Can anyone tell me if this is likely to be mites or some kind of disease? I haven't got a close enough picture to put on, but i'll try and get one. Could it be that the bird is just getting old, or is it more likely from disease, or a near miss with a cat?

Thanks, Paul

[freiston]

Originally Posted by tiadublin

Can anyone tell me if this is likely to be mites or some kind of disease? I haven't got a close enough picture to put on, but i'll try and get one. Could it be that the bird is just getting old, or is it more likely from disease, or a near miss with a cat?

Thanks, Paul

Hi Paul, the thread that I linked to above goes into the whys and wherefores

[amnesia91]

Bizarre, absolutely bizarre.

[tiadublin]

Thanks for the thread, i'm hoping it's not mites. The neck/windpipe lack of feathers doesn't worry me so much, it's more the the redness around the tail feathers. I hope she is ok as she has a lovely character and is always chirpiest bird in the garden!

Thanks again. Paul