About once a year, I’ll see an albino or a leucistic bird in my yard. Last week, I saw a white sparrow. At least I’m pretty sure he was a sparrow because he was flying with a small flock of other sparrows. The flock of 7 or 8 flew to the fence at my garden, then something spooked them, and they flew off to the back hedge. I thought that maybe since they had found food and water, they’d stay a while, but they didn’t. I haven’t seen the white sparrow since.
I wondered about the travels of the flock, then decided that they must have been on the move. With the drought and heat, perhaps they were forced to find a better place for food and water. Maybe they were headed to the mountains? Who knows?
I think my white sparrow was actually an albino – totally white, and not leucistic. As best I could tell, he had a white beak.
Bird leucism is the result of a genetic mutation that results in a total or partial reduction of color in a bird’s plumage. The reduction of color in the bird’s plumage is due to an inadequate deposition or fixation of pigments only in the bird’s feathers. Other parts of the bird’s body, like the beak and legs, have normal coloration.
Scientists say that albino or leucistic birds have a shorter lifespan because they stand out in a crowd and may be the first victims of a predator’s raid. A hawk, for example, would likely see the white bird first and attack it.
Hopefully, my white sparrow will make it, and hopefully, he’ll come back again. I have plenty of food and water for him.
