Yesterday I was contacted by an expert birding friend, Howard Vainright, that he and his dad, Julian had seen a “white bird” that morning in our general neighborhood area here in Greenville, NC, that appeared to be a Dark-eyed Junco. With my camera, I went to the site but could not see the bird. This was around 11AM. At 6PM or so, my wife and I went back to the area and there it was, eating calmly on the lawn. I took several photos over the next fifteen minutes. It was amazing to see this little critter, acting like a normal Junco in its strange almost white suit! It has only a few dark areas on its wings. Later, i talked with my dentist (now retired), who lives close by. He said he and his wife had been seeing the bird and that it had also been there last year. It is always interesting to see these natural variations and to have the chance to get a picture.
Leucistic critters are not true albinos. If they were, they would be pure white with pink eyes and no pigment at all. This one has quite a deficit of pigment, and is certainly a beautiful example of a leucistic one. See pictures below. Since this was originally published, there are further considerations that have raised the question as to the possibility that this is a leucistic Chipping Sparrow rather than a Junco. Howard Vainright noticed the abundance of brown in the colored feathers on the wings--Juncos are dark grey, not brown. Further efforts to get photos produced a Chipping sparrow feeding side by side with the white bird, and comparing the two birds shows matching brownish coloration, as well as identical size, tail length, and beak shape and size. I am more and more convinced that it is a Chipping Sparrow. See the last two pics below---
Leucistic critters are not true albinos. If they were, they would be pure white with pink eyes and no pigment at all. This one has quite a deficit of pigment, and is certainly a beautiful example of a leucistic one. See pictures below. Since this was originally published, there are further considerations that have raised the question as to the possibility that this is a leucistic Chipping Sparrow rather than a Junco. Howard Vainright noticed the abundance of brown in the colored feathers on the wings--Juncos are dark grey, not brown. Further efforts to get photos produced a Chipping sparrow feeding side by side with the white bird, and comparing the two birds shows matching brownish coloration, as well as identical size, tail length, and beak shape and size. I am more and more convinced that it is a Chipping Sparrow. See the last two pics below---
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