Blackbird

© Bill Coster/Alam

Blackbird in Essex, United Kingdom

The end of January in the Northern Hemisphere can be quite cold, as it is near the midpoint of winter. One local legend gives a fun take on how blackbirds got their dark feathers: To protect her young chicks from the cold Northern Italian winter, a mother bird with white feathers built her nest in a chimney. After her once-white chicks emerged, their feathers had turned black from the chimney's soot. Essex is a 'home county'–one of the five counties that surround London, England. The area was settled during the Iron Age before the arrival of Romans. 'Blackbird' is a song from The Beatles’ 'White Album', and features Paul McCartney on vocals and guitar.