Albinism and Leucism
A normal robin is in the top right
Recently a person sent me a picture of a strange looking American Robin that had been hanging around her home. It is displaying a condition known as leucism. Some people refer to it as albinism. But that is not quite the correct term. For albinism is a condition where there is no colour in any of the feathers or in the skin. The creature is entirely white. This is very rare. Leucism, or partial albinism, is much more common. Here the condition presents as patches where there is no colour in the feathers, but it does not extend to the skin. It can be symmetrical as in the case of this Robin or asymmetical. I have heard that this leucism is more common in birds than in mammals. But I don’t know about that. I have a very small patch of white hair on the back of my head that the barber has noticed. But I don’t think I’m all that uncommon!
Seriously, it seems that in the bird world Robins, and house sparrows are the species where it is most often reported. This may be because they are the most often seen.
Speaking of being seen, leucistic and albinistic birds often don’t survive as long as others for a couple of reasons. First, they are really visible to predators, much more than normally plumaged birds. Secondly, the feathers wear down faster as the melanin, the colouring in the feathers, helps make the feathers wear longer.
Interestingly, in the First Nation cultures of Vancouver Island, white ravens are revered. and in the last couple of years one has been showing up in the Parksville area quite regularly. Here’s a photo of it by noted Vancouver Island photographer, Ralph Hocken. It is a true albino.
To learn more about the natural history of Vancouver Island, take an adventure tour with Rainbird Excursions.
