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| Albino Robin, April 10, 2011, Lyons, Ohio USA |
Albino Robin
(2011)
Greg Ordy
This page contains information and pictures for the 2011 year. It was created because all of the previous pages were simply getting to be too big for a reasonable download time. To see information and pictures from previous years, please visit this page.
It's hard to believe, but it's been almost 5 years since I saw a partial albino robin in my yard. After putting up my first web page with a few pictures, I started to receive emails from other folks who spotted a whole range of albino variations around their neighborhoods. That first little seed has grown into a set of long web pages with dozens if not hundreds of pictures.
The reason, I believe, is that when you see any form of albino robin, it makes a very powerful impression. Many observers aren't really sure what they saw. The body looks like a robin, but it can't be a robin - can it? Perhaps it's a mystery that demands further investigation, and in today's world, that means the Internet.
It does seem as if sightings have fallen off in the last year or two. I've wondered what that might be about. One thought is that something has happened to then albino robin population. Of all of the ideas, that seems most unlikely to me. One idea I had was that with the downturn in the economy, many folks just don't have time or energy for chasing down unusual things they see. Another thought is that web searching, in general, is being replaced with the handful of popular social networking sites. So, you take your news to Facebook, or similar sites, and skip the general Internet.
No matter what the reason, it's the start of another new year, and the first sighting was emailed to me on January 25, 2011.
Here are the sightings that I've heard about since January 1, 2011. These reports came to me via email.
As was the case in all previous years, here are pictures graciously emailed to me from folks who have spotted albino robins.
This partial albino was reported on March 27, 2011, but it took some time to get a picture. Fortunately it was quite comfortable hanging out in the area.
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| Albino Robin, April 10, 2011, Lyons, Ohio USA |
This 100% albino was discovered by the editor of a local newspaper located on the opposite side of Cleveland from me. She provided the following picture:
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| Albino Robin, April 27, 2011, Strongsville, Ohio USA |
In addition to the still pictures, she was able to capture some video.
A story was also written about the sighting, which is at this link on the Strongsville Patch web site.
This is a wonderful story, because this is the third year in a row that this bird has been spotted in the same area. This is the bird named Al.
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| Albino Robin, March 21, 2011, Niles, Michigan USA |
The picture from last year is at this link. For two years ago, check out this link.
I'm sure that many normal robins return to the same yard or area year after year. Since they all look the same, however, we don't make the connection. The albino coloration is a funny form of bird tag, that lets us identify individual birds, and witness how regular and habitual they can be.
This bird has been in the same area for several weeks. The folks there call him Whitey. Seems to me that the only other possible choice is Orangy!
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| Albino Robin, July 23, 2011, Springfield, MIssouri USA | |
Here is a recently hatched pure albino. This picture is so sharp and clear that it should be in a science book, or win a photography contest.
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| Albino Robin, June 29, 2011, Holmen, Wisconsin USA |
