Leucistic Chaffinch in Aberdeenshire
One of our readers, Ian Cairns, took this image of a bird, probably a chaffinch, apparently showing signs of leucism. Mr Cairns spotted this bird near Loch Muick on the Balmoral estate in Aberdeenshire in May (NB, still snowing!).
Leucism (or Leukism)
Leucism is a very unusual condition whereby the pigmentation cells in an animal or bird fail to develop properly. This can result in unusual white patches appearing on the animal, or, more rarely, completely white creatures.
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| Images courtesy of Ian Cairns. |
This is the third leucistic chaffinch we have a record of, following one from Kent and another from Scotland.
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