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How to Tell If a Bird Is Albino
Not all white birds are albino, and not all albino birds are white.
It鈥檚 shaped like a robin,听sings like a robin, and听acts like a robin. But if it's a robin, where is its cheery red breast?
For those of you lucky enough to听spot a pure-white American Robin, you might think you've seen听a听ghost鈥攐r an听albino. But make sure to check its eyes, too. If it's听albino, its eyes will be .
On the other hand, pale-feathered birds with normally听colored eyes have a condition known as听leucism. Unlike albino birds, which completely lack the natural听pigment known as听melanin, leucistic birds听produce听melanin but听 into their听feathers.听Some may even have partial leucism,听resulting in a .
Melanin any black or brown color on birds, dogs, snakes, and humans. (Some brightly hued birds have so much melanin that their听plumage听turns听completely black鈥攁 variation known as melanism.)听The pigment is widespread partly because these colors are听useful听for camouflage. Meanwhile, albino animals听are highly visible to predators, especially outside of snowy habitats.听
Melanin is also essential to a bird's feathers: It makes them strong and durable. The pigment听 in the eye, too, allowing it to function properly and protecting it from damaging UV rays.听That's why true albino birds have impaired vision,听and rarely听make it to adulthood. If the bizarre-colored听bird at your feeder looks like an adult, there鈥檚 a good chance it鈥檚 actually leucistic and not albino.
Here's another twist: True albino birds might still be colorful. Albinos don't have听melanin, but often hold听 in their feathers. For example, carotenoids are responsible for red听and yellow feathers, which means an albino Northern Cardinal听can still be听crimson.
When it comes to identifying albino birds, feathers can be deceptive. So if you see a white bird at your feeder, remember that the eyes don鈥檛 lie.
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