Blackbird attack

[SPIKEYHEDGEHOG]

Hi there

I found a young male blackbird dead under the feeding area today. It's beak was crossed. It looked otherwise unharmed.

I placed it near the house on a flower pot while deciding how to dispose of it.

An adult male flew down and started pecking at it. Slow at first then rather frenzied.

The dead bird is now double bagged and my hands are well washed.

Any ideas why it would attack a dead bird?

Thanks

A pair of blackbirds are visiting the garden regularly, could this have been their 'son'?

[Dogghound]

Possibly died as the result of a territorial dispute between two males and the other male still saw it as a threat even though it is dead. How were you ageing it? when you say young do you mean this years young?

[htcdude]

Originally Posted by SPIKEYHEDGEHOG

A pair of blackbirds are visiting the garden regularly, could this have been their 'son'?

If it was black it was an adult male. If brown and clean looking, most likely a female. If brown and speckled, most likely this year's offspring.

Nige

[SPIKEYHEDGEHOG]

Hi and thanks for the replies.

Definately male, but smaller than the adults that visit.

Black with lovely orange ringed eyes and yellow beak.

Not very scientific eh?!

When it first pecked the corpse, it jumped back as if to say 'common wake-up'.

Me being over romantic perhaps. But it seemed to be getting frustrated at the lack of response.

I scared it off and it returned immediately even though I was standing there.

Both male and female visited the spot shortly after I removed it.

This wildlife is so much better than telly eh?

[Dogghound]

Its an adult so could we be a territorial dispute or a predator hard to say for sure. Juvenile blackbirds are not particularly smaller. Once they leave the nest they are more or less their full size. They start off a mottled brown then moult into adult plumage in late summer/autumn depending on when they were born.

[SPIKEYHEDGEHOG]

ok. I'm learning all the time. Thanks.

I must find the thread [there is bound to be one] 'Where have all my frogs gone this year?'

Great resource but I'm not getting the gardening done :-)

[Kayleigh]

If it was smaller maybe the crossed beak stopped it feeding properly as they are not smaller as others have said.

[SPIKEYHEDGEHOG]

Originally Posted by Kayleigh

If it was smaller maybe the crossed beak stopped it feeding properly as they are not smaller as others have said.

That would make sense.

But, apparently, the RSPCA told my neighbour that a parent bird will try and 'wake' an dead offspring and it will look like an attack. She had a similar thing happen last year.

I'm still looking for 'my' frogs.

After all, I stopped using the logs [for my fire] from the log pile when one croaked at me for waking it in December! It's a big pile and I thought we could share it :-)

[htcdude]

I think I mentioned in another thread a while back about the Dipper they had on Springwatch that was trying to wake it's dead offspring, that too looked like it may have been pecking at it.

Nige

[Kayleigh]

Going on the OPs description the bird does not sound like a chick but an adult bird as the plumage is not of a young bird..
Others on here have reported blackbirds actually cannibalising another blackbird maybe the bird died of other causes and this live one came along and decided to peck at the dead one...