We all occasionally see birds with some white feathers and, unless the bird has no colouring at all (albino), we generally put the lack of colouring down to leucism – an absence of pigment in some feathers. However, it’s not that simple – there are number of different types of lack of pigment (van Grouw 2021).
![Photo of a leucistic Knot amongst standardly coloured Knot at Snettisham Pits in Norfolk. Photo by Rob Pell](https://wwrg.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/P-leucistic-knot-1-Rob-Pell-1024x768.jpg)
![Photo of a leucistic Oystercatcher roosting with other Oystercatchers with standard plumage at Snettisham Pits in Norfolk. Photo by Rob Pell](https://wwrg.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Leucistic-Oyc-Snetts-Pits-Oct-2017-Rob-Pell-1024x768.jpg)