Camden News - by DAN CARRIER Published: 11 December 2008
Heath’s rare white robin stuns dog-walkers
THEIR red breasts are as much part of the Christmas scene as holly or mistletoe – but for one little robin spotted on Hampstead Heath, a quirk of genealogy means he stands out more than most. An albino robin stunned dog-walkers as it flitted from branch to branch in the copse alongside the path that runs by William Ellis school playground and the Parliament Hill Fields tennis courts.
Tim Webb, from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, said that although albino birds often occurred in the wild, they were rare to see.
He said: “They do not tend to last very long. “They get picked off quite quickly by predators because they lack any sort of camouflage and therefore stand out.”