Blue Birds [Unexpectations]

George Carlin famously asked, "Where is the blue food?" something that has nagged at me for years. Blueberries? "Blue on the vine," he points out, "purple on the plate."

Blue birds, however, are easy to come by: here in the eastern U.S. we've got our Eastern Bluebirds, Indigo Buntings, Blue Grosbeaks, Cerulean Warblers, and Blue Jays to name a few. Other regions around the world have their share as well. You'll find Pinyon and Stellar's Jays in the western U.S., Red-legged Honeycreepers in the neotropics, House Martins in Europe and tropical Africa, the Common Peafowl from the Indian subcontinent and aviary collections everywhere; the point being blue isn't uncommon in the bird world.

But what you don't find are Blue Storks, because generally you don't find storks that are blue in the wild.

Until now.

The BBC reports here on an oddly colored stork that appeared in a small town in Germany, one that is attracting quite a bit of attention and, in turn, tourism. Not to mention speculation, what turned this bird blue?

Bonus link: watch Carlin's "Blue Food" routine on Youtube.

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