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Hi..I was shocked to see in my garden over the past few weeks Blackbirds mating with Starlings.
I have been lucky to see the result as in my garden visit the young birds which were produced by this cross breeding . The youngsters which i dont know what to call them have the dark black looking head like a blackbird but the wings of the starling mothers !!!! It was unbelievable to actually see them mating !!! I didnt think that they mated across different breeds !!! but obviously they do....Im not sure what exactly to call the new brred that frequently visit my garden !!!!
mummalou
Cris said:Those pics are all of typical starlings
Are you sure about that, Cris? Legs are wrong colour and bill (what we can see of it) looks too stout and then there's the red flash on wings.
It looks to me more like an immature male Red-winged Blackbird which is an American species. It would be interesting to know where and when the photos were taken.
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Tony
My Flickr Photostream
Hmmm...on reflection and on looking at the pics on a bigger screen and following up what TeeJay has said I retract my post. Mea Culpa. It does indeed look like a juv RWB. I wonder if these pics have anything to do with the original posting about (unlikely) cross breeding of Starling and Blackbird, and indeed it would be interesting to know where the pics were taken.
You’ve never seen a starlin with the redwing patches ever this is a cross breed
this picture is a still shot from a video I took from my bird buddy camera and it’s definitely a cross in prairieville Louisiana
As you're in the US, and as was stated... it's a juvenile red-winged blackbird
Link to other images
Louisiana, I bet you can’t show me another photo of a juvi rwbb with those clear starling checks I’ll wait, I’ve actually submitted this to LSU bird dept can’t remember the actual study name and they are perplexed
I have given this community a long break as I got fed up with too many 'nonsense posts' with people just guessing, making stuff up or refusing to accept straight forward identifications.
1) This site is UK. Overseas can access it, and contribute, but it seems ridiculous to start an argument from a different continent unless very familiar with the continent you're talking about and joining in with.
2) It is patently obvious from what she wrote, the original poster doesn't know male and female blackbirds aren't both black. It's also obvious there's a load of guessing going on in that first post in the thread.
3) The Louisiana bird is clearly an immature red winged blackbird. There is nothing in the photo to support a hybrid or anything to do with European starlings. Again, a wild guess, simply from not being able to find an example and therefore guessing an alternative......and then arguing about it. If both you and the 'LSU bird department' want a photo to show another bird the same as the footage, here is one.
4) If using this community in future, always worth noting whether someone who's more than likely written an implausible opinion has come back with anything supportive....e.g. a photo. They don't because there's nearly always a reason why their posted opinion is implausible.
If you still don't accept the i.d., please elaborate on what exactly is meant to be a starling that isn't a rwbb?
Merry Christmas.
Your photo or vid didn’t show up and BTW the bird I submitted has been a regular for a couple years now and is hardly a juvenile anyway hope your feelings are hurt to badly to enjoy your holiday!!
Sorry the link isn't working. Bit strange as I can't now find that photo. I've quickly dug out another two here and here. The one from yesterday was a better comparison imo, but how many examples of proof do you need?
I am sorry to have to break it to you on Christmas Day, but I am afraid you have different individuals visiting you.
As per my msg yesterday, people who make stuff up fail to then supplement with anything worthwhile like a photo. You didn't respond with anything that supports starling.
I think you need to qc any future post before hitting 'reply', as apart from spelling and lack of punctuation, I think you meant, ".....hope your feelings aren't hurt too badly...".